Identification

Width: 15-18 mm
Height: 8-10 mm
Whorls: 5+

The shell of this snail is flattened heliciform with strong radial ridges and an open umbilicus, as in many of the species in its family. The color pattern upon its shell is spaced, radial, irregular spots – like Anguispira alternata but more colorful, with smaller, more distinct reddish patches on a yellowish background. It also differs in having whorls that are rounder and mucus that is clear. Larger shells may be darker in color.

Ecology

Anguispira fergusoni is found in maritime and piedmont woods and other coastal habitats from Long Island south. It may ascend lower tree trunks on damp nights. Örstan (2009) monitored five individuals in Montgomery County, Maryland that were dormant beneath the soil surface, from late November until warm weather in late March when they emerged. Slapcinksy (pers obs) notes that A. fergusoni colonies can be large at senescent trees with trunk cavities.

Taxonomy

Synonyms are: Anguispira alternata fergusoni, Helix alternata fergusoni.

Distribution

This animal is an Atlantic Coastal species, with a range from southern New York to South Carolina. In Virginia it found along the coast and near rivers in the Piedmont, but is reported as far west as Pittsylvania County along the southern border. Interior reports may be in error.

Conservation

NatureServe Global Rank: G4

Identification

Width: ~3 mm
Height: ~7-12 mm
Whorls: 7-9

The shell of Allopeas gracile is elongate, glossy and translucent. The lip is simple. The live animal is yellowish. Compared with Subulina octona this species is smaller and does not have a truncated shell tip (White-Mclean, 2011).

Ecology

This tropical species is omnivorous, consuming fresh vegetation, fungi, and dead insects and worms in a laboratory experiment (Capinera, 2017). It may feed on various vegetable or flower crops (Romaine lettuce was a favorite), but is not usually a major agricultural pest.

This snail can reproduce sexually or asexually. Snails reached maturity at 50-60 days (Capinera, 2017). Adult snails laid eggs in groups of 3-5, up to 1 cm deep. Allopeas gracileaveraged 153 eggs in their lifetime. Eggs matured faster in warmer temperatures, varying from 19 days to 8 days.

Taxonomy

Allopeas gracile has also been called Bulimus gracilis, B. oparanus, B. junceus, and Stenogyra upolensis (White-McLean, 2011).

Distribution

Widespread in the subtropics globally, including Southeast Asia, Dominica, West Indies, Hawaiia, Central and South America (Robinson et al., 2009; White-McLean, 2011). In the Northeast there are scattered reports from New Jersey and Pennsylvania south.

Conservation

NatureServe Explorer rank: G5, Secure.

Identification

Width: 2.5-4.5 mm
Height: 7.5-9.0 mm
Whorls: 7

This species has an elongate, nearly straight-sided shell that is glossy and translucent (Kerney and Cameron, 1979). The lip of the aperture is simple, the umbilicus is perforate. The live animal is pale yellow. The shell is smaller than the very-similar A. mauritianum and its spire is wider than A. gracile (Pilsbry, 1906 in Malay Peninsular Terrestrial Molluscs, 2017).

Ecology

In Malaysia, Allopeas clavulinum is a litter-dwelling species, living among stones, leaves, grass and soil, from 300 to 2000 m altitude (Benthem-Jutting, 1952 in Malay Peninsular Terrestrial Molluscs, 2017).

Taxonomy

Also known as Lamellaxis clavulinus. Some authors have synonymized this species within A. mauritianum.

Distribution

Probably from East Africa and Indonesia, spread into European greenhouses (Kerney and Cameron, 1979). In the Northeast it has been collected in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.

Conservation

NatureServe Explorer rank: G5, Secure.

Identification

Width: ~2.5 mm
Height: ~3.25 mm
Whorls: ~4

The shell of Zoogenetes harpa is ovate-conical, adorned with thin, widely-spaced ribs (Pilsbry, 1948). Colored brownish-green and somewhat glossy, the shell is narrowly umbilicate with an oval aperture.

Ecology

Zoogenetes harpa is found in damp leaf litter and moss near lakes and swamps according to Hubricht, (1985). However, in northeastern Maine, Nekola (2008) found it most often in upland habitat at sedimentary rock outcrops, aspen forest, and white spruce forest.

Taxonomy

Synonyms are Helix harpa, Acanthinula harpa, Zoögenites harpa (Pilsbry, 1948). Its common name in Swedish is blåbärssnäcka.

Distribution

Zoogenetes harpa is circumpolar. In Europe it occurs in Scandinavia and Switzerland (Bank and Ramos, 2016). In Russia in the Caucasus Mountains (Balashov and Kijashko. 2017). In North America it is found in Labrador, New England from Massachusetts and Vermont north, also in the upper Midwest, and in the West to Alaska and as far south as Colorado (Pilsbry, 1948).

Conservation

NatureServe Rank: G5, Secure.

Identification

Width: 2.4 mm
Height: 1.2 mm
Whorls: 3+

The shell of this animal has a similar shape to others in its family, with large whorls and a very low apex. It is smooth or very finely striate, with a lip that is reflected toward the outside of the shell. The umbilicus is open.

Ecology

Vallonia pulchella is found often in grassy places like meadows or along roadsides and lawns (Hubricht, 1985). However, in Europe it is reported from wetter habitats such as wet meadows and marshes, as well as dry dunes and grasslands (Kerney & Cameron, 1979). This species is holarctic, found around the world at high latitudes. Unlike several other Vallonia species that may be introduced in North America, V. pulchella is likely to be a native – found in Pleistocene sediments and native grasslands (Nekola, 2008).

Whitney (1938) examined the reproductive cycle of this animal in the laboratory and found that eggs are laid singly over several days. These eggs hatched in 12 days, and reached maturity in two months. Isolated individuals were able to reproduce, suggesting parthenogenesis or self-fertilization in this species.

Taxonomy

Synonyms for V. pulchella are: Helix minuta, H. pulchella, and Vallonia minuta.

Distribution

This species is found in twenty six states, most significantly in the northeastern quarter of the continental US, though it has appeared in California and Texas. It has a similar distribution in Canada, being found most in the southeastern part with appearances in British Colombia. In Virginia it has been found in counties along the coast, the north, and west, with a “gap” in the center of the state.

Conservation

NatureServe Global Rank: G5
NatureServe State Rank: S3S4

Identification

Width: 2 mm
Height: 0.7 mm
Whorls: 3.5

The shell for this species has a similar shape to others in its family, with large whorls and a very low apex. The umbilicus is very wide, allowing for a view, or perspective, of interior whorls. The radial ribs are moderately pronounced though somewhat delicate. The shell itself is thin and pale. The rounded aperture has a flared lip that, in contrast to V. parvula, is not particularly thick. Though smaller, this species resembles V. cyclophorella.

Ecology

Vallonia perspectiva is a calciphile that likes habitats with broken rock – railroad tracks for example, or talus slopes in the woods (Hubricht, 1985). Some authors suggest that most Vallonia species are introduced in eastern North America (e.g. Nekola, 2008).

Taxonomy

There are no synonyms.

Distribution

This species’ range seems to be wide but also somewhat sparse, having been identified in twenty-one states from the Dakotas south to Arizona and mountains in Mexico, and east through the mid-Atlantic states, in several of these only in one or two counties. Records are somewhat more concentrated in Virginia, appearing in the northern tip of the state as well as at a few points along the southern border.

Conservation

NatureServe Global Rank: G4/G5
NatureServe State Rank: S3