152 HELICID.E. 



colour with often a greenish or reddish hue, finely but irregu- 

 larly striate by the lines of growth, otherwise quite smooth : 

 epidermis rather thick : ivliorls 3-4, convex, the last occupy- 

 ing at least four-fifths of the shell : spire short, abrupt and 

 blunt at the point : suture rather oblique and deep : mouth 

 oval : outer Up slightly thickened, contracted above, where it 

 joins the columella: pillar lip sharp. L. 0-6. B. 0-3. 



Yar. 1. suhghhosa. Shell shorter and broader in proportion 

 to its length, usually much smaller and more solid. 



Yar. 2. vitrea. Shell extremely thin : spire smaller. 



Yar. 3. solidula. Shell much thicker, reddish-yellow. 



Habitat : On water-plants and other herbage,, as well 

 as on mud, in all sorts of moist places, from the extreme 

 north of Zetland to the Channel Isles. Var. 1. Marshes 

 and by the side of lakes, on the sea-coast and in moun- 

 tainous districts. Var. 2. Carmarthenshire (J. G. J.) ; 

 Cork (Humphreys). Var. 3. Deptford, Wilts (J. G. J.). 

 This species is one of our upper tertiary fossils. Abroad 

 it ranges from Siberia to Naples ; and Captain Hutton 

 lias found it in Afghanistan. Probably some exotic 

 species are mere varieties of this widely-diffused shell. 



It is a sluggish mollusk, and secretes a quantity of 

 slime. The clusters of eggs are oblong. It hibernates 

 early, and passes the winter attached to stones by means 

 of its epiphragm, which resembles silver-paper. The 

 shell sometimes attains the length of an inch. 



According to the strict rules of priority, Klein's spe- 

 cific name of vetula ought to be adopted ; but it is now 

 obsolete. This name may possibly have been derived 

 from an account which was given by Tulpius, an ancient 

 and very learned physician, in his medical observations, 

 of a wonderful cure performed on an old woman of 

 eighty-nine by a dose of two of these snails pounded up 

 alive ! 



