Daily movements and visual location of plant stems byLittorina irrorata(Mollusca: Gastropoda)

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Abstract
The daily movements of Littorina irrorata were examined. These snails move about on the substrate at low tide, and ascend plant stems on the advancing tide, thus avoiding predators. Snails released on the substrate amid plant stems, just prior to the release area being inundated by the advancing tide, moved in a relatively straight path and usually (67 %) ascended the closest plant stem. The propensity of these snails to ascend the closest stem was shown not to result from collisions resulting from snails travelling a straight path in a random direction. Field experiments involving transparent and black rods of equal size showed a significant tendency for snails to move towards black rods. These results suggest vision mediates the oriented movements of L. irrorata to plant stems in their natural habitat.

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