Ross,

Can't help you with the book -- my only landshell book is The Compendium of
Landshells.  Also can't help with the "cold and wet" business -- in fact we
could really use some of the wet around here.

But as for how a snail gets from island to island, that is an interesting
question.  Similar questions have been asked about many of the animals found
on different islands.  As it turns out, your floating on logs theory is not
as far fetched as you probably intended.  Certainly the most obvious method
for a land based mollusk to venture across the water would be by means of
eggs on floating vegetation.  However, there is nothing that says an adult
animal couldn't make the same trip -- especially when one considers the
ability of said snail to aestivate and thus withstand the heat and
desiccation.  After hearing any number of people talk about the
improbability of such a trip, we had some incredible proof just this last
year.  In the Caribbean, several iguanas were seen making a beach landing,
floating on vegetation.  The island they landed on had no iguana inhabitants
until this event.  Scientists are now keeping a close eye on the animals to
see how they prosper.  So, if a three foot lizard can float from island to
island; then it  ought to be a piece of cake for a tough little snail.

Tom Eichhorst in New Mexico, USA

> Question: in the Philippines, are many species endemic to one island, or
> are most found on several islands?  How would they get from Island to
> Island - on floating logs?
>
> Cold and Wet in Nova Scotia,
> Ross.