September 1, 2011
MALACOLOGY REVIEWS, IN FULL, ARE IN THE LEFT HAND COLUMN OF THIS PAGE
The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating [is]"truly a gem . . . The reader is gracefully brought to an intimate examination of the mystery of life as evidenced by a small land snail as well as the larger personage of the author. A rich celebration . . . ” —American Conchology
Filled with humour, pathos, and a gentle wonder . . . exquisitely written . . . ” —Tentacle
THE PERSONAL SNAIL EXPERIENCES OF WILD SNAIL READERS:
A SNAIL SURPRISE sent in by Steve Rosenthal 12/30/10
I made plans with a fellow naturalist friend to visit Sunken Meadow Starte Park here on Long Island NY one of the few places on LI where this species can be found, most of the likely habitat has been supplanted by suburbia for many years. But not there. We did succeed in finding a few empty dead shells, which was our goal, in leaf litter etc at the base of the wooded slopes they like, Anyway we then turned our sights to birding and while walking the dirt trail past the bluffs I spied a familiar site . . just caught a look at what looked like a whilte shell lip sticking out of the solid dirt ground bordering the trail . . . I dug it out and sure enough it was a fresh Neohelix. (the dead ones are quite worn and pale) . . this one had just the tippy-tip of the shell showing sticking out. I assumed it was a dead shell and put it in some water later at home to wash the dirt out . . . but when I looked about two hours later I saw a foot sticking out. So I quickly took the shell out and made a little terrarium for him and he's fine now. I will take him back to where I found him in the spring. Very odd to find a live shell on the surface basically on December 11th, and it had been VERY cold here for several days leading up to that very cold day. I'd like to believe I saved him from what may have been a very unsuccessful hibernation! If I had known ahead of time he was alive, I would have just reburied him/her/it a bit deeper...
Author note: Unlike some snails that may dig down into the dirt to hibernate, the Genus Neohelix actually hibernates on the surface of the ground but beneath a layer of leaf litter. So the snail probably would have been fine, except that it is unusual it was so visible, perhaps something had disturbed or removed leaf litter over it and that could have put it more at risk.
AFTER A STORM sent in by Daniela Bonafede-Chhabra 11/6/10
When I was 3 or 4 years old, growing up in Italy and summering in a village in the Alps, I was coaxed by my mom to go for a walk after a big thunderstorm. I was still a little scared from all the thunder and lightening, and more than a little reluctant to go outdoors . . . My mom told me that snails come out of their shells after a storm, and that I might be able to see one. We walked and walked, finally happened upon a beautiful one just under a rainbow! I was utterly delighted and insisted on bringing my new best friend home! Her name was Lili. She wasn't allowed into the house, so I made a bed of lettuce for her on the porch. In the morning, of course, she was gone... That entire summer I walked and walked all over woods and meadows, hoping to see her again! I didn't, but discovered many more treasures!
WILD SNAIL EATEN sent in by Sarah Seelinger 9/14/10
The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating was attacked by a hungry seagull! This happened last week on Venice Beach. Unsuspecting of watchful eyes, I set the book down in the sand so I could go for a swim. When I returned, I was horrified to find the snail had been ripped right off the dust jacket!
THE EVOLUTION OF THE CONTINENTS & A SNAIL sent in by Judy Mikovits 8/30/10
I, too, have a very special connection with snails! My first job at the University of Virginia was feeding snails for a lovely Professor named JJ Murray. He charted evolution by the migration of the snails across the oceans. What did it take to feed the snails? We kept them in their pots and little petri dishes with a single square of toilet paper a piece of lettuce, a sprinkle of water and chalk. Twice a week I cleaned out the last uneaten food and added new. One day I lost one of the snails!! It was midnight and I frantically called my roommate to beg for help. How do I find this missing snail?? It could be the key to the evolution of the continents!! I was frantic! My roommate calmed me down with the suggestion "Judy how far could a snail get in 2 hours?"—good point I thought. She then asked “if you were a snail where would you go?” For whatever reason, to a 19 year old frantic college student on scholarship, this statement made perfect sense, so I immediately begain running my fingers up under the lips of the metal shelving units in which the snails were housed. I found the Italian snail under the top lip only a few shelves from home—the evolution of the continents was safe and I would not be relieved of my scholarship or dismissed from UV.
Comments have been disabled for this post