HELIX. 193 



peripher}^ appear slightly keeled ; the last occupying about 

 half the shell : spire short, but somewhat pointed : suture rather 

 deep : mouth of the same shape as in the last species, and simi- 

 larly strengthened inside by a broad white rib, which is visible 

 on the outside and placed near the opening : outer lip thin and 

 veiy little reflected, except towards the umbilicus, not much 

 inflected above : umbilicus very small and narrow, having more 

 the character of a perforation, and partly covered by the re- 

 flexion of the outer lip. L. 0-275. B, 0-5. 



Var. rti/ilahris. Shell smaller, with the inside rib of a 

 reddish-brown colour. II. nifilahris, Jeffr. in Linn. Trans, xvi. 

 p. 509. 



Habitat : On grass and herbage in the hollows of 

 downs on the Kentish and Sussex coasts ; common. 

 The variety is found at Lewes and Littlehampton. 

 Gerstfeldt, as well as Middendorff, has recorded this as 

 a Siberian species ; but it does not appear to have been 

 noticed in the North of Europe. It inhabits the whole 

 of France, the Rhine district, South Germany, Switzer- 

 land, Dalmatia, Italy and Greece. Miiller, who first 

 described this species, says that he received French 

 specimens from Geofiroy. 



This moUusk is hardy, and during the heat of the 

 day remains attached to stalks of grass and leaves of 

 plants by means of a film, of the same nature as the 

 epiphragm, which it secretes for that purpose. The 

 edges of the mouth or outer lip are thus agglutinated. 

 The animal has a singular habit of protruding the whole 

 of its foot before any other part of the body when it 

 issues from the shell to commence its walk. Its eggs 

 are nearly as large as those of H. Cantiana, which has 

 nearly three times the bulk of the present species. I 

 have never observed any appearance of hairs on the 

 shell ; but perhaps none of my specimens are sufficiently 

 young to show this character. 



K 



