Land-snails 3 5 i 



le 



is easily distinguished from all its congeners by th( 

 shape and ornamentation of its shell. This is conical, 

 the spire raised considerably, of a dull brown hue, 

 and the epidermis forming ridges which in the centre 

 of each whorl are developed into sharp spines. The 

 mouth is thickened by a white rib. The shell is 

 carried erectly when the animal walks. It must be 

 sought about woods, on the dead leaves of beech, 

 alder, and holly, and among scale-mosses (Junger- 

 mannia). It is said to climb trees, but is apparently 

 too knowing to take the trouble to climb down ; its 

 method of descent is to attach itself to a nearly falling 

 leaf and use this as a parachute by which to make 

 the descent. Small snails that attach themselves to 

 dead leaves are, no doubt, often distributed widely 

 from their birthplace by the strong winds of autumn. 

 The Plated Snail {H. lamellata), of similar propor- 

 tions to the last named, is less conical and more 

 globose, more tawny, with a satiny lustre. The 

 epidermis is produced into close and regular plaits 

 or folds across the whorls. The half-moon shaped 

 mouth has a thin lip, and the umbilicus is narrow, 

 but very deep. Its habitats are similar to those of 

 the Prickly Snail, but its range is restricted to 

 Scotland, Ireland, and the north of England. 



The Cheese Snail (H. ohvoliUa), so called by Dr. 

 Gray from its resemblance to a flat cheese, is also 

 quite distinct from all other native species. It is r. 

 round coil, flat above, not unlike the Ram's-horn 

 Snail (Planorhis corneus), the spire depressed below 

 the level of the body-whorl, the periphery rounded. 

 It is half an inch in breadth, its colour dull ruddy- 

 brown, and the epidermis is thickly covered with 

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