Foreign body in Helix aspersa

[singeid]

Hi all,
I'm an amateur snail keeper after inheriting a hitch-hiking Helix aspersa in a batch of flowers from a local garden store. We've gotten along well for the past several years and I've learned more than I ever cared to about snails.

I'm stumped on the latest though and none of the Snail forums seem to have encountered this so hoping someone here can help.

Two weeks ago, I noticed that s/he'd retreated to the top of the tank for a couple of days and appeared to not be fully retracting. When I took her into the bathroom for a closer look under brighter lights, what I thought was an eye stalk was actually a foreign object protruding from the side of her head! I was able to manipulate it (not happily received by the snail) and ended up using tweezers to gently pull. When she retreated to the shell, the object pulled out!

It was about 1.5 centimeters in length and what had been exposed to air was dried and browning, what had been embedded was white and plump/hydrated.

She almost immediately perked up and ate/drank/went back to normal and hasn't shown signs of illness since. In fact, laid a 2nd batch of eggs just last week after I found another hitch-hiker in my back yard and he joined the indoor garden snail community.

Any idea what this was and what I can do to prevent it from recurring? Hoping I didn't cause damage but based on her return to happy sliming, it appears to be a positive thing that it was removed.

Thanks in advance!!

[coyote]

Hi singeid, welcome to the forum. Glad to hear your snail perked up. The fact that she's behaving and eating normally is a good sign.

Based on your description I have no idea what the object might be. I don't suppose you happen to have a pic of it? At first I thought it might be a love dart from another snail, but if I read your post correctly it sounds like she was the only snail in the tank when you discovered the object.

I wish I could be more helpful; perhaps others here will be able to help figure this out and chime in on the discussion. I hope your snail continues to do well, and congrats on the eggs!

[singeid]

Thanks coyote! She was alone at the time but who knows what she's been getting up to in the middle of the night. She'd been alone for 3 years before spontaneously laying eggs when everything I'd read said they could hang onto sperm for 2. Imagine my suprise when cleaning out the tank! Last week marks the 2nd batch but that one's understandable since a newcomer had been added.

I might run the risk of getting myself booted off of here but only one of the eggs from the first batch has hatched. Where I live, garden snails are categorized as an invasive species and are supposed to be destroyed, then reported to Fish & Game which is why I moved her to captivity when I first found her. No way my house can handle 35 of them! Although she's certainly been trying.

As long as the 3 I've got are happy and healthy, I'm ok with that.

[coyote]

No worries, singeid, many of us freeze unwanted eggs from surprise clutches. When snails are so prolific we can't be expected to rear every single hatchling. It's important to go through the tank on a regular basis, though, to cull out any unwanted eggs before they are close to hatching.

It's possible to recognize egg-laying behavior, so if there's a next time your snail may tip you off that she's in the process of laying and you can make note of the spot in the tank where she is. Then when she's done you can go back and remove the unwanted eggs.

I wonder if your snail self-fertilized? I suppose it's also possible for one to hold onto sperm for longer than the generally assumed time limit. Snails are always doing things that surprise the experts.

[singeid]

Thanks - we're on every other day egg checks now. I did catch her burrowed and in the actual process of laying the 2nd clutch so that was less of a surprise than the first one. And last night I came home to catch the two adults in the act again! Starting to understand why they're classified as an invasive species here, it's only been two weeks! Unchecked, these two would have had my yard overrun in about 3 months. It's going to be a free-for-all when the little one from the first surprise batch reaches maturity.

[coyote]

Yes, they are prolific. Happy egg hunting!

[SnailsPace]

Sounds like a love dart to me, hers coming out I mean, did it dry clear brown? Like when melted sugar goes hard? A bit curly? I've seen it a few times on my Isabellas, when I'm on laptop tomorrow I'll post a pic

[SnailsPace]

Might be able to get it off Photobucket on my phone, will try.....

Attachments:

[SnailsPace]

Et voila! Anything like this?

[singeid]

Nope - a lot smaller/shorter and what was exposed was brown/brittle - the same color as her eye stalk. When it pulled out, the embedded part was white, opaque and straight.

She was also alone in the tank when I found it, unless it was the baby snail. The other adult wasn't added until 3 days later. Can they dart themselves?

[Robert Nordsieck]

Hi there,
I am not sure this is the love dart - looks more like the spermatophore to me. But I am not familiar with the species.

I have a nice picture of a pincushion Cornu aspersum. Must be quite handsome (for a snail), because it was hit by three (!!!) other snails, of which one was a Cepaea, I reckon:



Kind regards
Robert

[coyote]

I have never heard of a snail love-darting itself. I don't think it's physically possible. Self-fertilization? It's possible. Self-darting? I doubt very much.

[Robert Nordsieck]

Hi there,

oh, sorry, I did not get that the snail was alone. Of course, a snail would never dart itself, why should it do so. I even do not think that it would be physically possible.

It would be quite helpful to have a picture of that snail. Otherwise we will keep guessing what it could potentially be.

Kind regards
Robert