Cepaea hortensis

Family

Helicidae

Species

Cepaea hortensis (Muller, 1774)

Common name

White-lipped snail, Small banded snail

Description

The glossy 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 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.
from 10 to 18 mm and a diameter of 14 to 22 mm. The number of 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.
on 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 either 5 - 5 1/2 depending on locality. 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 smooth and may have a uniform color that ranges from primrose yellow, olive-yellow, grey-yellow or grey-yellow brown with the lipLip:
The margin of the aperture, which may be sharp or thickened depending upon the species (Also see apertural lip).
being white in color. The shells may have one or five stripes that are chestnut-brown in color. There are also fine growth lines on the external surface 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.
.

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 and Central Europe

Distribution

North America:

• U.S.: Massachusetts, New York, Vermont
• Canada: Newfoundland, Quebec

Atlantic Islands: Iceland

Europe: Central and Northern

Ecology

This snail typically infests greenhouses and its longevity is approximately 5 years.

Synonyms

• Helix subglobosa A. Binney, 1837, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., 1:485
• Helix hortensis Muller, 1774. Verm. Hist., 2: 52; A. Binney, 1851, Terr. Moll., 2:111, l8 Tachea hortensis W. G. Binney, 1878, Terr. Moll., 5: 378, figs. 262, 263

References

Anderson 2005; Boycott 1934; Horsak 2004; Kantoret al. 2009; Kerney et al. 1979; Pilsbry 1939