ID Help Needed

[coyote]

Mr Coyote and I found this snail today out in the rain on a driveway in a suburban neighborhood in San Jose California (San Francisco Bay Area). I don't recognize the species. Any help? The shell is about 17mm (5/8").

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[coyote]

Fortunately we had a small empty jar with us and I collected the snail to bring home.

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[coyote]

Ten minutes after we collected it, a car pulled into the driveway and would have crushed the snail.

These pics don't quite show the true color of the shell. It is more amber than it looks here and more translucent as well.

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[wolf]

Hi,
reminds me of Cantareus apertus (Born, 1778), introduced from the mediterranean region. Perhaps the body should be a little bit darker. Could that be possible? It´s just a guess...... .
Produces funny noises if disturbed....... .
Kind regards: wolf

[coyote]

I haven't heard the snail make any noises yet, but I will be listening.

According to Roth's "Checklist of the Land Snails and Slugs on California," C. apertus has been documented in Santa Clara County (where I found the snail), so this is very likely.

Now that it's daylight, I can see that the shell color could indeed be greenish rather than amber. I have found that the bodies of Helicidae snails in this region become paler in the winter months, and even throughout the year there is quite a variation in the relative darkness of their bodies. Some seem to stay pale all year long, others are more dark all year long, others change according to the season. Now that our winter rains have begun, I expect this snail to stay pale for the next several months anyway.

Thank you for this info, Wolf!

[wolf]

Hi, coyote!
Fascinating observations concerning the variation in body pigmentation.......... . Very interesting. Depending on temperature or some circannual rhythm? Some chromatophores might spread out or concentrate depending on temperature. Chromatophores variating in size (and therefore color impression) are known from squids. Sorry, I´m just speculating...... .
Keep on listening, but don´t forget to tease her (only a little bit, of course..... ).
Regards: wolf

[coyote]

Temperature might be a factor, but I had been assuming it was related either to day length or exposure to sunlight. I keep primarily aspersas and O. lacteas, and I put their tanks outside in a protected shady location in my yard during mild weather, for fresh air and because it puts them closer to their natural environment (bringing in the tanks in the evening, of course). In this part of California we have a Mediterranean climate of warm to hot summers without any rainfall and cool, rainy winters. During the spring, summer and early autumn months, when the tanks are outside the most often, I have noticed that the snails' bodies tend to turn the darkest, and in winter when the tanks remain mostly indoors, the snails are the palest. Now and then there will be an odd individual who remains dark (or pale) all year, but that has been the exception rather than the rule. Because of this I was thinking that exposure to (indirect) sunlight was a factor. But I am not a biologist, so of course my assumptions could very well be incorrect.

[wolf]

"my assumptions could very well be incorrect": mine as well...... ; anyway, very interesting. Might be melanin in snails not only enhances the camouflage but also protects against the UV-radiation (causing mutations), like in human beings. If so, they should be darker in summer than in winter.
Kind regards: wolf

[rosiesnail04]

can anyon help. My website is : www.snailsof.mine.webs.com
goto the photos and go to profile picture and then ones called tiny. Click and post a comment. Thanks! x