timelapse of an eastern whitelip snail (Neohelixalbolabris) vigorously consuming shroom
many of the large land snails with the ‘classic’ snail appearance that people see in north america are introduced garden dwelling species, but N. albolabris is a native species that’s most at home deep in moist forests where it feeds mainly on fungi.
Apparently I’m drawing slugs wearing hats now. Because why not? Why start making sense now? LOL!
Wow, this post must’ve gotten reblogged by a big account because it’s doin’ numbers. Just FYI, for anyone who’s interested, I have stickers and pins of both of these lil sluggies (and many of their friends as well) on my Etsy Shop!
When are Pterotrachea finally going to go viral? How does anyone look at this animal and not flip their shit? I first saw them in a BBC documentary when I was a toddler and I still can’t believe a real thing evolved like this, but somehow as soon as I’m done thinking about them they just quietly retire to the background of my memory.
Multiple divers say that they have a tendency to follow you around when they see you. :) :) :)
Anatomical guide by request! This animal is technically a snail, but here’s how the parts of its body match up to a more typical snail:
They look like relatively ordinary snails early on, or at least in embryonic development, but as they mature the shell reduces, the mouth stretches out into a proboscis, and the foot flattens into a fin that steers it through the water “upside-down.”
It also happens to have EXTREMELY advanced eyeballs for a gastropod!
The rotund mysterysnail. It’s rotund. It’s unequivocally a snail. But what could possibly be so mysterious to warrant the name ‘mysterysnail’? What are you hiding, Viviparus intertextus? Most species of the family Viviparidae lack common names, unlike the rotund mysterysnail and (lest we forget) globose mysterysnail. The origin of ‘mysterysnail’ (and seemingly most viviparid vernaculars) appears to trace back to when these snails found their way into aquaria. As indicated by the taxonomic titles, viviparid snails are ovoviviparous and allow internal gestation of hatched young. Though unusual among gastropods, this reproductive strategy provides offspring with the additional time to develop shells before birth. The first aquarists to introduce these species to their aquariums apparently had no clue, as according to Minnesota DNR, the name was coined after miniature but strangely mature snails kept ‘mysteriously’ appearing.
Interestingly, viviparids share their ‘mystery’ with some ampullariid snails like Pomacea bridgesii. Several of these species are popular among aquarists and are commonly known as mystery snails, among other names. But the name doesn’t appear to have any relation to reproduction. Anecdotally, these ampullariids were a mystery simply because nobody knew what they actually were.
Full video here of this gastropod-specialized snake actually eating the snail, I just think these first few seconds are the new funniest thing in the world somehow
I have some live pothos and English ivy in there, as well as some various mosses; hoping they hold up well with the humidity. Still need to get a small food dish, but I cannot WAIT for the snails to arrive!!
When are Pterotrachea finally going to go viral? How does anyone look at this animal and not flip their shit? I first saw them in a BBC documentary when I was a toddler and I still can’t believe a real thing evolved like this, but somehow as soon as I’m done thinking about them they just quietly retire to the background of my memory.
Multiple divers say that they have a tendency to follow you around when they see you. :) :) :)
Anatomical guide by request! This animal is technically a snail, but here’s how the parts of its body match up to a more typical snail:
They look like relatively ordinary snails early on, or at least in embryonic development, but as they mature the shell reduces, the mouth stretches out into a proboscis, and the foot flattens into a fin that steers it through the water “upside-down.”
It also happens to have EXTREMELY advanced eyeballs for a gastropod!
