Cepaea nemoralis

Family

Helicidae

Species

Cepaea nemoralis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Common name

Brown-lipped snail, Larger banded snail, Banded wood snail, Grove snail

Description

The heliciform shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
of this snail ranges in widthWidth:
The width of the shell is the maximum distance across the shell (including the aperture).
from 18-25 mm (rarely 32 mm), attaining a heightHeight:
The height of the shell is a measure of the distance between the apex and the most basal part of the shell OR the measurement taken from the apex of the shell to the base, when measured parallel to the axis of the shell.
of approximately 12-22 mm (rarely 28 mm). The heightHeight:
The height of the shell is a measure of the distance between the apex and the most basal part of the shell OR the measurement taken from the apex of the shell to the base, when measured parallel to the axis of the shell.
of the shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
is usually less than the widthWidth:
The width of the shell is the maximum distance across the shell (including the aperture).
of the apertureAperture:
The major opening of a shell that the body of the animal may be retracted.
. The shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
is dense and has a slight sheen with few growth lines. The shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
may be brown, orange, red, yellow or olive in color and may posses one to five black or dark brown (cinnamon) spiralSpiral:
Directional term: direction of the coils of the whorls of a shell; opposite of axial.
stripes which may coalesce or be absent. There are 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 whorlsWhorls:
Pleural of whorl. A whorl is a complete spiral turn/growth of the shell of a mollusc. The whorls are counted from the apex outwards.
with the last descending in front the apertureAperture:
The major opening of a shell that the body of the animal may be retracted.
. The lipLip:
The margin of the aperture, which may be sharp or thickened depending upon the species (Also see apertural lip).
is purple-brown, thickened and slightly curved. The umbilicusUmbilicus:
A navel-like indentation or depression in the center of the shell. It may be described as open (inside of columella visible), partially closed (partly covered by base of aperture) or completely closed (not visible). The width of the umbilicus is a measure of its greatest diameter.
is absent in the adults and narrow in the juveniles. The body of the snail is cream colored; however, the tentacle and headHead:
The area of a mollusc's body that has the tentacles, eyes and mouth.
are darker in color.

Cepaea nemoralis and C. hortensis can be separated by the their distinctly colored apertural lipApertural lip:
The margin of the aperture, which may be sharp or thickened depending upon the species (Also see lip).
. In adult specimens of C. nemoralis the lipLip:
The margin of the aperture, which may be sharp or thickened depending upon the species (Also see apertural lip).
is always brown, while that of C. hortensis is white. Also C. nemoralis is larger than C. hortensis.

Native range

Western Europe

Distribution

North America:

• U.S.: Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia  
• Canada: British Columbia, Ontario

Europe: Central and Western

Ecology

This snail is commonly found in urban areas where it inhabits gardens or abandoned lots. This snail has frequently been observed aestivating on tree trunks. The diet of this snail includes dead and living plant material, carrion, fungi, moss and insects (thrips, aphids). In some cases it may take approximately three years for this animal to achieve maturity and longevity is approximately 5 years. Polymorphism observed in this snail is genetically determined.

Synonyms

• Tachea nemoralis L. Binney, 1878, Terr. Moll 5:379, fig. 264; 1885, Man. Amer. L. Sh., Bull. U.S. Nat Mus. No. 28, p.468, fig. 512
• Helix nemoralis Linnaeus, 1798. Syst. Nat., Ed. X, p. 773
  

References

Anderson 2005; Boycott 1934; Forsyth 2004; Kantor et al. 2009; Kerney et al. 1979; Orstan et al. 2011; Pilsbry 1939