Abstract
The habitat, diet, life history, and reproductive cycle of Retusa obtusa were investigated over a period of [Formula: see text] years in a population found in the Inner Harbour at Barry, Glamorgan, U.K. A technique was devised for extracting Retusa from the mud of this area. R. obtusa occurs in the topmost 3.5 cm of fine mud covering Barry harbor, which is immersed by the sea for only a short time at each high tide. The principal prey was found to be Hydrobia ulvae.The life cycle was found to be annual, the adults dying in spring, following the natural breeding season. Occasionally, a short extra breeding period occurs in the fall. The life span in no case greatly exceeded one year. Retusa is a protandrous hermaphrodite, and copulates in the fall. The eggs mature through the late fall and the winter, a few at a time, until oviposition occurs in the spring. The average number of eggs produced per individual was 33, deposited in 1–4 egg batches. Development is direct.
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