baker] evening with AQUARIUM AND SNAILERY 319 



that the jaw was used to bite off large pieces of vegetation, which 

 were then reduced to pulp by the action of the teeth or radula. 



The sight of the aquarium and snailery filled with living animals 

 fired our ambition and we plied the Professor with questions rela- 

 tive to the immediate possession of aquariums and snaileries for 

 each of us. 



He smilingly encouraged us in our desire, and said that almost 

 any kind of a glass jar or globe would answer the purpose. A fish 

 globe was recommended as was also an electric battery jar, and 

 even a quart mason fruit jar. The top, he said, should be covered 

 with netting to keep both land and fresh-water snails from getting 

 out and crawling about the room. Some floating water-plant 

 in the aquariums, as duckweed, bladderwort, and watercress, 

 with a few small ferns and some moss in the snaileries, would 

 add to their beauty, and make them more homelike for their 

 inhabitants. 



We were warned against mixing different kinds of snails in one 

 snailery, for while the majority are vegetable feeders, and perfect- 

 ly friendly with each other, a few are carnivorous and would prey 

 upon each other and also upon other snails. Such species as Cir- 

 ctnaria, Glandina, and Testacella were to be especially avoided. 

 We also learned that if there was not a sufficient amount of lime 

 in the water of the aquarium, the snails would eat each other's 

 shells to obtain this necessary material. Professor Parker advised 

 us to study the growth of some of the land snails; and as a pre- 

 liminary lesson , he set us to hunting for some of the eggs in his 

 snailery. After a few mintues' search, George found a little cluster 

 of eggs under a projecting clump of earth. They were perfectly 

 white, and about one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter. 



The Professor told us that during May or June these snails lay 

 their eggs, to the number of forty or more, in moist localities where 

 they are sheltered from the rays of the sun. Favorite places are 

 under old leaves which have space beneath them, by the side of 

 logs, stones, or sticks, and under loose pieces of bark or chips. 

 Twenty or thirty days after the eggs are laid, the young snail is 

 hatched and starts on its life journey, reaching full maturity in 

 about three years. In October or November, in this latitude 

 (about 42 degrees north), the snail ceases to be active and hiber- 

 nates during the cold winter months. 



