About Mariaglaja tsurugensis (Baba & Abe, 1959)
Mariaglaja tsurugensis is a species of sea slug, also called a "headshield slug". It is a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk that belongs to the family Aglajidae. The geographic range of this species extends from Tanzania to Australia. This species is a simultaneous hermaphrodite. Contrary to classic theoretical predictions, Sprenger et al. (2011) demonstrated for the first time that the mating rate of this simultaneous hermaphrodite is largely unaffected by changes in mate availability. Since its mating rates are close to the female fitness optimum, these findings challenge the widely held idea that mating rates in simultaneous hermaphrodites are driven by male function, and indicate a need for additional research into how mating rates affect fitness through male sexual function.
