White-Lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis) lives in moist woodland across Europe and Western Asia. It feeds on leaves and stems. Its conservation status is Least Concern.
Fascinating facts about the White-Lipped Snail
- A white-lipped snail its shell tops out at just 22 mm (1 in) across, a shade smaller than its cousin C. nemoralis. Juveniles keep a tiny gap at the shell's base, but adults seal it shut. Most shells are bright yellow, yet the same snail can sport brown, pink or pale yellow backgrounds, and display up to five brown bands that sometimes merge. This colour-band mix-and-match has drawn generations of scientists trying to decode why such variation persists.
- When two white-lipped snails mate, they don't just exchange slime, they fire love darts. The dart's tip bears a tiny cross with bifurcated blades, a shape that differs from the simple cross of C. nemoralis. Inside the snail, the mucus-producing gland splits into four or more branches, compared with three or fewer in its sister species.
- Its original home spans Western and Central Europe, yet shells found on the northeastern coast of North America date back at least 7 850 years, long before Vikings ever set foot there. It pushes farther north than any other Cepaea, reaching Scotland's highlands, the Icelandic coast and Scandinavia up to 67° 30′ N, and can live at 2 050 m in the Swiss Alps.
- The white-lipped snail prefers the damp and chilly side of nature. It shares woods, dunes and grasslands with its cousin, yet tolerates wetter, colder spots. in Spain it only lives in the north-east and never reaches Italy.
- Humans have moved it beyond its native range, introducing it to Russia's Moscow region and Ukraine, though it hasn't spread as aggressively as its cousin C. nemoralis.
Sources
Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.
At a glance
RangeEurope and Western Asia
HabitatMoist woodland
DietLeaves and stems
About the White-Lipped Snail
In the dewy stillness of a forest morning, the White-Lipped Snail emerges, its delicate foot gliding effortlessly across the moss-soft earth as it navigates a world of intricate textures and subtle scents. With a gentle, unhurried pace, it makes its way through the undergrowth, leaving behind a trail of silvery slime that shimmers like a ghostly pathway in the morning light. As it moves, the snail's shell, a swirling vortex of brown and yellow, seems to blend seamlessly into the dappled surroundings, a testament to the remarkable camouflage that has allowed this humble creature to thrive in its hidden world.
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