Sex Ratio, Imposex and Penis Morphology of the Four Intertidal Muricid Species (Thais clavigera, T. luteostoma, Ceratostoma rorifluum & Ocinerberllus inornatum) (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Muricidae) in the Korean Coasts

Sex ratio of a population is a key factor to determine reproductive rate of the population. If the population has skewed sex ratio to the male, the population size may decline gradually at an area which it inhabits, and, furthermore, if a species plays an ecologically important role in its community (e.g., a keystone species in Paine, 1966), its potential reproductive rate will be to form a characterized community because community structure is strongly influenced by the abundance of the ecologically important species (Hughes, 1986). A number of workers (e.g., Bryan et al., 1986 in Nucella lapillus; Spence et al., 1990 in Thais haemastoma) suggested that high frequency and/or late stage of imposex might affect the female mortality and normal reproduction adversely. Consequently, the imposex could affect sex ratio of natural population of some neogastropod including thaisid species. (omitted)