HYGROMIA HISPIDA. 21 
The eggs are from 30-40 in number; they are globose, opaque, and 
white, about 1 mill. in diameter. ‘They are laid from April to September, 
and hatch in from 20-25 days, and become adult during the second season; 
the young shell when hatched is flat and has then but a single whorl, which 
is said to be more than half covered with short and straight red hairs, 
which become stronger as they approach the lip. 
Food.—In captivity, Hygromia hispida is, according to Dr. Gain, very 
fastidious in the choice of foods, for out of 192 different kinds offered, they 
left 124 absolutely untouched, and though only two—beans and the roots 
of carrot—were voraciously devoured, yet 36 others were eaten quite 
freely, amongst them being cabbage, turnip, clover, the fruits of gooseberry, 
strawberry, and raspberry, and the fungi, Armllaria melleus and Russula 
heterophylla. 
H. hispida is one of the pests of moist gardens, and though said to feed 
on dead plants, also attacks living ones. It has been noticed in Scotland 
feeding upon reeds, and Dr. Baudon says they are very fond of the gum 
which exudes from certain trees. 
Habits and Habitat.—Like most other species, Hygromiu hispida is 
naturally nocturnal or crepuscular in its habits, only venturing forth 
during the day in damp, cloudy, or showery weather, hiding in dry 
weather amongst moss or beneath stones, logs, dead leaves, rubbish, etc., 
on roadsides, in shady woods, hedgerows, gardens, and other places, and 
though chiefly inhabiting the lower grounds, is known to ascend to an 
altitude of 6,000 feet in the Alps and elsewhere, and the var. sericea 
reaches beyond 8,000 feet in the Valais. 
It is very partial to a moist and shady environment, and congregates in 
nettle-beds, and ivy-covered walls, trees, or hedges, as well as on herbage 
generally, from which specimens can sometimes be obtained in great 
numbers by sweeping with an entomological net. 
The animal is somewhat sensitive, yet not very active, carrying its shell 
sometimes almost horizontally, while at other times it may be held nearly 
vertically or sloping strongly towards the front or the right side. 
The degree of hairiness of the shell is also very variable, but the invest- 
ment is always most dense in immature shells and on those found living 
amongst nettles and other vegetation in moist places; it has also been 
remarked that the very hispid form is especially characteristic of beech 
woods, their dense shade being apparently favourable to the development 
of the hispid investment, which is correlated with the aspect of the shell, 
this being always duller in the densely hispid specimens, becoming smoother 
and brighter in proportion as the hairs are less numerous. 
The hairs with which this species is often so richly furnished are 
frequently covered with muddy particles, and the shell is then easily 
passed over as a piece of dirt, and Dr. Pilsbry is of opinion that the con- 
cealment of the shell by this means is the function of the hispid epidermis. 
The adaptive character of H. hispida is demonstrated by its ability to 
exist in the driest as well as in the moistest places, for it has been found 
abundantly on the North Yorkshire sandhills, and also occurs in very 
humid situations. Its plasticity of organization enables it to follow on 
occasion a subhalophilous life; to imhabit dry and sunny calcareous 
pastures on Thymus serpyllum in association with /Helicella itala; to live 
amongst Tanucetum vulgare on Millstone Grit in company with Helix 
