another Snail identification

[vanillaessence]

hello a friend sent me 4 of these in the post today dont know what they are and she doesnt either, she hatched them from eggs so have had them from babies..

if u need anymore pics let me know

thanks

[vanillaessence]

heres a picture that i have just took, the other picture is what my friend sent me before sending the snails

[ness]

Interesting. Do you have any information, as in the region where they were originally collected?

How large are they? Are they adults (they look as if they are pretty much juveniles).

Do they have any colourings on the shell (a smooth coloured area) underneath where the shell meets the body?

They bare a resemblance to achatina zebra but it would be very unlikely. I have a feeling zebra have a sandy tint to their bodies, though I could be wrong, and they've not been kept in Europe for quite some years (again as far as is common knowledge) Plus they are very hard to raise/keep successfully and appear to prefer cool temperatures.

More likely they are Achatina immaculata var. immaculata (rounded shell)

(photo by Kevin)

[ness]

Further to my last post (updated) do you have information on who your friend purchased the eggs from (the seller may know) or were the eggs collected from the wild?
Eiterh way, as mentioned, region of collection could give a hint.

[vanillaessence]

Hiya, from what Niki told me, they are juveniles, they are as bigger than my a. fulica babies,, its a light colouring and i dont think she used a heat mat either but i have emailed her.


my friend didnt even know that there was more than one giant land snail species until i asked her lol! but they do look like some kind of species achatina immaculata like you said...

if they are ill be over the moon as i only paid for postage of them but if anyone has any other ideas what they might be let me know..

ness i will have to check when i get back from hospital about the light coloured area, as i have to go in now but i will get back asap x

[vanillaessence]

Ooops i forgot to say im in the uk, in cambridgeshire, and she is in stoke, in the uk, so she would probably have got them off someone else??

and what interested me in them was they albino body they had and the shell x

[ness]

Oooh good luck in the hospital, hope all goes well. x

The bodies do not look like they are truely albino (sorry) as they do have hints of pigment in there, especially round the eye stalks and along the top of the body. But they are very beautiful anyway, and like you say a very good deal!

[vanillaessence]

i did not notice that about the body colouring, lol im back now anyway, i turned one of the snails around and the pattern on the shell gets darker like almost a greyish colour, and ive noticed its got reddish pink on the front too,

if they are margies which im now hoping they are .. what do i need to know about them ? are they okay being kept with A. fulica and A.reticulata ?

[vanillaessence]

Sorry for posting more than once buts heres what nik says


They were in a tub on in my snake rack so were heated to 32 C in the day and 27 C at night .
They were given to me as eggs which I hatched and raised them with the intension to give them to my friend to use as food for shingleback lizzards . Unfortunately , he sold the lizzards so I was left with these snails . I have no idea what the parents look like or come from as I was simply handed a tub with the eggs in it .
I fed them cabbage and what ever veg I could get . Spud skins , fruit skins and garden leaves like bamboo etc .

Cheers
Nik

hope that helps xx

[ness]

No they're not margies, they look like an Achatina species (margies are Archachatina and have rounded shell-tips and raised 'v's on the tops of their tails).

If the are Achatina Immaculata they require the same care as fulica, but it can be risky putting them in with other species. They may be ok, but some immaculata varieties have a fondness for protein and may rasp and take chunks out of the the bodies of your other snails.
Best to keep them in a different tank if you can

Thanks for the other information from Nik, I think it gives a good indication of temperature requirement - high 20's.