A love dart is a calcareous, chitinous or cartilaginous dart used by some hermaphroditic land snails and slugs during courtship, before copulation takes place.

The darts are coated in mucus containing a hormone which reconfigures the recipient's reproductive system: the sperm digestion organ is closed, and the copulatory canal (leading to the sperm storage) is opened. This reconfiguration allows more sperm to access the sperm storage area and fertilize eggs, rather than being digested, ultimately increasing the sender's chances of paternity.

Love dart - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia