325 



THE 



JOURNAL OF CONCHOLOGY. 



Vol. II. JULY, 1906. No. ii. 



OBSERVATIONS ON THE TERRESTRIAL MOLLUSCA OF 

 THE DISTRICT AROUND SILVERDALE, LANCASHIRE. 



By R. STANDEN. 



(Read before the Society, November 8th, 1905). , 



In September and October last I stayed at Silverdale, West Lanca- 

 shire, close to the shore of Morecambe Bay. Whilst there I made 

 some observations relating to the habits and life-history of certain 

 land-shells, which may be of useful interest to some of my concholo- 

 gist friends. 



The whole area of my researches is situated on the mountain 

 limestone, which, however, does not here attain any great altitude. 

 The district is fairly well wooded almost, in places, down to the 

 water's edge, with here and there dells, or glens, strewn with huge 

 rounded limestone boulders, and full of luxuriant vegetation, remind- 

 ing one strongly of the little glens, so prolific in mollusca, in County 

 Antrim, north of Ireland. My investigations extended to and included 

 Arnside Knot (522 feet), a picturesque bit of Westmorland, a flank of 

 which (Far Arnside) stretches out promontory-like into the bay. I 

 worked inland as far as Warton Crag (400 feet), Storr's Moss, Leigh- 

 ton Moss, Haweswater Tarn, and also paid a short visit to Grange- 

 over-Sands, which is separated from Arnside by the rivers Kent and 

 Winster. The flora of the whole region is rich and diversified, and 

 altogether it is an ideal spot for any naturalist, whatever his or her 

 particular bent. Its richness in moUuscan life has already, to some 

 extent, been shewn in various papers contributed to this Jonr/ial, but 

 much virgin ground still remains unexplored. 



The climbing habits of many of our British land shells are well 

 known, and have been noted by various authors, but the spectacle of 

 Helix fiemoralis and H. hortetisis scaling the topmost twigs of the 



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