An Unusual Snail

Plaited Door Snail, Cochlodina laminata.  High Elms Country Park, 21 July 2012.

I was looking at some unusual plants in the woods at High Elms Country Park when I saw this snail shell apparently attached to one of them.  It seemed unusual, being much longer than it is wide, looking more like a seashell than something belonging to a land snail.  It's not rare, but if you don't look for it you are unlikely to see it.

Here is it in the palm of my hand.  You can see it is quite small.  But when I waited to see if anything was still living in the shell, I found that its owner was smaller still.

The Plaited Door Snail comes out of its shell.    High Elms Country Park, 21 July 2012.

First it pushed out the front and back ends of the part that you eventually see, then the middle squeezed out.  It spread out lengthways and at the same time the eyes appeared on their stalks.  Then it was ready to roll.

What a tiny creature to have such a shell!  Apparently this snail lives on algae, small fungi and decaying wood, usually on the ground in leaf litter.  In humid weather it climbs trees, though that was not where I found it.   If it has to pull that shell up trees it must be quite strong.

The Plaited Door Snail walks away.    High Elms Country Park, 21 July 2012. 

After photographing it I put it back on the plant where I found it.

In these woods you can also find the Roman Snail, which is huge in comparison.