Reproduction
Achatina snails are hermaphrodites with cross-fertilization. They reach sexual maturity in the age of 6-7 months. However, there are species that are sexually mature about or slightly later an year.
90% egg-laying Achatinas first discharge about 10 empty or so called fat-eggs. This is a serious training before real pregnancy. Snail trainees to give birth by laying eggs what are initially empty.
Courtship, which occurs with dances and contact the sexual organs of the partner can, be very long - up to several hours. Some mates can last even up to 15 hours.
Direct fertilization takes place when Achatina touches the genitals of the partner, that when folded look like a white dot on the neck behind the right eye.
Period of "pregnancy" is about 1 or 2 weeks, then Achatina lays till 400 white oval eggs into small digging holes in the soil.
Depending on ambient temperature the little Achatina cubs in the lenths of 3 to 5 mm appear on the surface after 1 - 3 week waiting. There are also viviparous species of Achatina. For some species, the period of incubation is more durable and can reach up to 45 days.
Time of egg development depends on the humidity and temperature in the terrarium and can last up to 2 months. First, the egg shell is dense enough with the amber tint. But with time the content of the egg becomes cloudy and the shell becomes thinner and more transparent. It gives its entire calcium to the growing embryo shell. Therefore the young snail does not hatch, but at some moment finds itself "outside" in the middle of several thin pieces of the former shell.
Achatina are hermaphrodites, that means that each individual has male and female sex organs. With a low population density self-fertilization may appear, but it is quite rare. During copulating of two equal in size Achatinas bilateral fertilization is quite possible, if the snails have different sizes, the larger acts solely as female because the development of eggs requires large energy expenditures. For the same reason young sexually mature snails are only able to form sperm, the egg formation begins few months later.
A snail can store sperm for two years after mating, using it to fertilize mature oocytes even at the partner's absence. Achatina can lay 5.6 clutches per year. The size of one egg is 4,5-5,5 mm, in form it resembles a chicken one. Embryo development is possible at the temperature of 15 ° C and lasts from several hours to 17 days.
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