MILLER, B L W; Univ. of California, Santa Cruz: Heritable body size and consequences for sex allocation in a simultaneous hermaphrodite, Ariolimax dolichophallus

Body size is an important life history trait that is under strong natural and sexual selection. There is often a difference in the importance of body size between the sexes, and natural selection will favor organisms that make life history decisions based on body size to maximize fitness. In simultaneously hermaphroditic animals, body size can impact sex allocation on individual mating encounters. In these systems, body size can determine which animal plays which sexual role, or it can influence the ratio that each organism allocates to each sexual function during the mating encounter. Here, I report on strong heritability of maximum body size, and correlations between body size and female fitness measures in a simultaneous hermaphrodite, the banana slug, Ariolimax dolichophallus. I will also be discussing the implications of heritable body size and sex allocation and how it could lead to sexual specialization in simultaneous hermaphrodites.