The effect of trail‐following on the locomotion of the marsh periwinkleLittorina irrorata(mesogastropoda: Littorinidae)1

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Abstract
The marsh periwinkle, Littorina irrorata, like many gastropods, can detect conspecific mucous trails and often follows them with polarity. Although trail‐following is a common component of L. irrorata's behavioral repertoire, the adaptive significance of this behavior is not evident. This study examined some of the biomechanical and energetic advantages of tracking in L. irrorata. Mean crawling speeds of L. irrorata on artificial and natural substrata ranged from 0.615 to 1.74 mm/sec and tended to decrease with increasing substratum particle size. The presence of a conspecific's mucus did not affect snail speed over the substrata tested. Similarly, analysis of the foot morphology of marker and tracker snails revealed no significant differences between foot area, perimeter, maximum width, or shape (foot length/foot width). The maximum foot length of markers’ feet were significantly greater than those of trackers. Laboratory tests showed that tracking over the trail of a conspecific required between 15% and 43% less force than marking or tracking over one's own mucus. The possibility that trail‐following serves as a means of reducing metabolic cost is discussed.