Cernuella spp.

Family

Hygromiidae

Species

Cernuella neglecta (Draparnaud, 1805)

C. virgata (DaCosta, 1778)

Common name

Cernuella neglecta: Dune snail

C. virgata: Maritime garden snail, Vineyard snail, White snail, Striped snail, Zoned snail

Description

Cernuella neglecta: 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.
of the dune snail is 6-10 mm high and 9-18 mm wide, with 5-6 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.
. 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.
has a white background with several brown-pink colored stripes. The apertureAperture:
The major opening of a shell that the body of the animal may be retracted.
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.
may have a pinkish lipLip:
The margin of the aperture, which may be sharp or thickened depending upon the species (Also see apertural lip).
on the inside. 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.
of this species is smoother and more depressedDepressed:
Shrunken below a certain level.
than C. virgata.

C. virgata: This 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 species may attain dimensions as large as 19 mm high and 25 mm wide, with 5-7 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.
. The color of this snail's 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 not uniform. 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 have dark colored stripes that may or may not be continuous (may appear as spots or bands).

Native range

C. neglecta: Mediterranean region

C. virgata: Mediterranean region and Western Europe

Distribution

Cernuella virgata:

North America:

• U.S.: North Carolina, Washington

Europe

Australia

Ecology

This group is known to be a pest of small grains and seedling production. This pest species has the potential to produce 60 eggs per clutch and as many as 40 clutches per year. This species is considered a significant agricultural contaminant of small grains due to sheer numbers of snails that occasionally aggregate on the crop. They cause significant economic losses to farmers as their aggregation on crops clog and damage machinery during harvest. The presence of large numbers of snails in harvested grain elevates the moisture content and promotes secondary infestation by fungal pathogens that produce toxin in the grain. Toxin contaminated grain is unmarketable, as it is not fit for animal and human consumption. Multiple countries have rejected shipments of grain from Australia due to contamination by this species.

Synonyms

Cernuella neglecta:

• Helix neglecta Draparnaud, 1805

C. virgata:

• Cochlea virgata Da Costa, 1778
• Helix variabilis Draparnaud, 1801
• Xerophila euxina Clessin, 1883

References

Anderson 2005; Barker 2002; Hitchcox and Zimmerman 2004; Kerney et al. 1979; Robinson and Slapcinsky 2005