Spanish Stowaway - Offspring Update; what?

Thanks crossless. Hortensis can be found in Northern Europe (according to wiki) so he should do fine here. If that's what he is he can go live outside XD

I was looking up Helix pomatia and even though they're not native to the UK they are a protected species in England;

"In England only (not the rest of the UK) the Roman snail is a protected species under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, making it illegal to kill, injure, collect or sell Roman snails.[6]"

Wow, I might have broken that one a lot as a kid

Will try to get some more pics today. He's estivated over night so I can get better pictures of his underside before I wake him up... unless I shouldn't wake him up. I mean it IS early spring, maybe he should be sleeping? *sigh* pesky temperate zone critters!

[EDIT]

Got a couple more pictures;

i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/aerliss/Snails/11042010132.jpg

i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/aerliss/Snails/11042010130.jpg

I gave him a little spray and he woke up. He's now quietly chowing down on some red cabbage and cucumber. Poor thing, probably spent his entire life in a giant lettuce field. Nothing else to eat... ever.

Already about 26mm, yes. Guess I'll have to keep him around till he gets older.

What makes you say he's a juvenile as opposed to a young adult?

Thanks for the help Wolf.

Oops, no offence meant there. I have little experience in guessing the age of snails, especially non-GALSs, so was a completely honest question.

Well, if I'm going to keep him he needs a name... as a traveller from a distant place I shall name him Tosk.

Hi,
interesting case and exciting discussion - I enjoy it.
aerliss: oh, sorry, anything´s all right. Sometimes it´s a little bit difficult for me to express exactly what I mean in English. It´s much more easier for me to avoid misunderstandings in German..... . Sorry, anything is o.k..
crossless: interesting hypothesis. In Helix/Cornu the umbilicus (I don´t know how you call it in English) is opened in a young specimen more or less and nearly or totally closed in adults. Bradybaena fruticum reaches a hight of 10 to 19 and a width of 13 to 23 mm. But what concerns me even more is the clearly wrinkled shell surface (if I get that right). In Bradybaena you normally have to use a magnifying glass to recognize the very faint wrinkling. I´m not sure at all about Tosk. I hope it will grow and soon show its identity.
Sincerely: wolf

aerliss: perhaps we should just wait a while and watch him/her grow . Sometimes just time solves the problem....... . In some weeks you can make some more pictures and we can test our ideas (Cepaea, Helix, Cornu, Bradybaena) once again. Maybe some other people in the forum can help. We´ll see.
All the best: wolf

I guess that´s a young Otala species.
Maybe Otala lactea or O. punctata.
Or at last chance an Eobania vermiculata.
Anyway is still a bit early to have a definitive conclusion...
Like Wolf said, let´s wait a bit more.

Time for some more pictures. Let's see if these are any help in identifying him;









I've not been able to get a picture of his base as he refuses to go inside his shell at the moment. Will try later when he's gone back to sleep.

I too am beginning to suspect it's a Helix. But pics (or description) of the aperture, umbilicus and columella would help.

We´re gettin´ closer now. Oh, heaven, it´s not a Helix (in Helix genus, the whorls are increasing in width more rapidly). On the other hand, it seems to be rather large in width: about 32 mm, obviously (right?). I´m down on my knees. I´ve never seen a species like this before ...... . Crazy....... . Are there any Otala species in Spain with such a high spire??
Help!!
Kind regards: wolf

So not thinking he's just a slightly oddly shaped Helix? Would be nice to have a pomatia as it's illegal to collect them in England and they're not found in Scotland. If he's an aspersa, well getting friends should be easy XD

I found a lonesome aspersa outside our house one night, which is odd because usually if there's one there's a million (have to tread careful when it rains). As I was thinking of gettong Tosk a friend I decided this was a sign and; yoink.

I also found, on a different occassion, a little Cepaea nemoralis trying to cross the road outside our house. not the best idea.

They're both now living happily in the tank with Tosk after gettng a dose of hypoaspis miles mites. The aspersa, Worf is half again the size of Tosk and the nemoralis, Julian, is about 2/3rds the size of Tosk and still growing. I've seen Tosk and Worf getting friendly, but not Julian.

Now I have babies. 11 teeny little shells with eye stalks XD

I don't know if this helps with identification or just hinders it.

Got a quicky pic of the three together;

twitpic.com/20xpdv

Glad they're breeding because it means I've got the cconditions right... gonna have to start keeping a closer eye on the soil for eggs though. Especially as, if no one wants one of the little mutts, I'll be keeping all 11 o.O