Data: This little guy is very common in my garden in Los Angeles, California and I suspect it was imported in a plant sometime in the past, rather than being a local species. It does not seem to eat live plants as I find it only on decaying or dead plant matter. I think the specimen in the picutre is full grown and it is perhaps slightly more elongated than it appears due to the angle of the picture. The shell is a plain amber color with no markings when the snail is gone. Thanks for your help.

Send Ideas to: Jerry Lacy

Discussions:

• Your mystery snail appears to be Succinea unicolor:
  http://www.jaxshells.org/gallery1.htm. It's very common in commercial nurserys hereabouts.
  It may not be that particular species but it's mighty close. My shelling companion
  and I have started this little project locally where we go to the local nurserys and "shell" their plant stocks to see what we can find. I did a little article for my last newsletter on the results thus far. I know that species get spread easily by the nursery trade despite the best efforts of agricultral inspectors. My own yard is proof positive!
  Bill F.

• The species is a member of the family Succineidae, at the moment, I at least, can not take it any further. Over the last few years this group of snails has been turning up frequently in the cut flower and nursey trade, on things especially out of Singapore, among other places, in Europe, America, Australia, south east Asia etc...Stephanie