116 THE SNAIL 



Place a small piece of the hermaphrodite gland on a slide 

 in a drop of water : tease it slightly : cover ; and examine 

 with low and high powers. 



The gland consists of a number of finger-like 

 follicles, in each of which ova are developed in the 

 outer wall, and spermatozoa in the more central 

 part. The ova are large round granular cells, with 

 very large reticulate nuclei : the spermatozoa, which 

 are generally aggregated in wisp -like bundles, have 

 small rod-like heads and very long tails. 



2. The hermaphrodite duct is a very sinuous duct of a 



yellow colour, lying along the inner side of the spire, 

 close to the columella, and opening into the inner 

 side of the albumen gland. 



3. The albumen gland is an elongated compact yellowish 



white body, varying greatly in size at different times. 

 It lies in the upper half of the first turn of the spire 

 along its inner side, between the stomach and the 

 right lobe of the liver. 



4. The common duct arises from the end of the albumen 



gland, close to the point of entrance of the herma- 

 phrodite duct, and runs forwards through the body 

 to the level of the hinder border of the buccal mass, 

 lying along the right side of the crop and ossophagus, 

 and slightly ventral to these. 



It is very wide, and along the greater part of its 

 length is incompletely divided by a longitudinal septum 

 into two parallel ducts. Of these one, the walls of 

 which are thrown into very numerous and prominent 

 transverse folds, serves for the passage of the ova ; 

 while the other, which transmits the spermatozoa, 

 has a comparatively smooth surface, but has its walls 

 thickened by a whitish glandular prostatic mass. 

 At their anterior ends the two ducts separate com- 

 pletely from each other as oviduct and vas deferens 

 respectively. 



Slit open the common duct longitudinally ; and note the 

 septum, which partially divides it into male and female ducts. 



