> If submerged for 24-48 hrs at room temperature in a closed system lacking a
> healthful atmosphere, the animal expire in a relaxed posture, having taken
> on lots of water in its pallial cavity and soft tissues. I have observed
> this to be a fairly consistent reaction -as Fabio says, this technique is
> used by anatomists to optimize the dissection procedure.

Actual floodwater, however, hasn't been boiled to remove oxygen, and
with moist skin, land snails should be able to absorb some oxygen
through their surfaces (as amphibians do), so I'd guess they can last
a little while, or a long time in unusual settings.  There's a paper
some years back from a malacology journal reporting on an apparently
aquatic population of terrestrial slugs; I may be able to track it
down.

Drowning land snails is a good way to preserve the anatomy in a
relaxed position, but it's bad for DNA, so think about what you want
to do with the specimens.

--
Dr. David Campbell
425 Scientific Collections
University of Alabama
"I think of my happy condition, surrounded by acres of clams"

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