Defectives?
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Is that part of the worms being 'defective' is how some seem to hold the eggs in large clutches and then the next worm just drops the eggs on the run? What is the norm? With all the tracks in this clip, she must have done her traveling before settling to have a family. Smart girl!
Stay cool
Posted
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by
Quia
moderator
@aexbrown will definitely have a better answer than me for this! But I do think you're right, the massive clutch laying is tied to one of the various egg laying defective mutations. I'm not sure how much energy is required by the worm to lay an egg, the way some previously active worms, like this one, will stay stationary after laying a massive clutch, suggest that they're exhausted... but I really don't know.
My reasoning... Despite your cheeky 'smart girl' comment, it's not smart to settle down and lay a lot of eggs in one spot! All her young will be competing for food, whereas if they're spread out, they don't have to worry about broth--err, sister, and sister, and other sister, when looking for food. Most of the worms we're looking at do 'lay and run' or at least don't lay more than a few eggs on top of one another. Since we're looking at a lot of different mutants, the 'settle down and start a family' type is likely caused by a specific mutation
Posted
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Thanx Quia, I like your reasoning with the sisterhood, that they could compete for food. I will be more mindful of the category of worm I am looking at in the future.
Stay cool
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