Kurt,

Thank you for putting my comments into better perspective.  I am interested
in Californian Helminthoglyptidae which have proven to be a variable and
confusing bunch relying on shell characteristics alone.

One final virtue of landsnails to bring to the attention of the list- they
travel extremely well.  They can often be kept alive and fresh for weeks,
months and even years without food or water-they simply seal up their
aperture and aestivate.

Cleaning marine shells in the field is difficult for me and the result-
bringing home a box of smelly rotting mollusks- is sometimes a bit
disconcerting for my family travelling with me.  Landsnails, however, can
simply be put in a box with a little bit of paper towelling and they
aestivate quietly for as long as I need, without odor or the other
repercussions of travelling with dead mollusks.

This is said of course, with note made of all of the necessary care required
to ensure that live snails don't escape and get introduced into the wild
back home (Mine always go directly from the carry-on bag to the freezer).
Also, if one is travelling internationally, there are usually strict
regulations concerning bringing live snails into one's home country.

Again, Kurt, thanks for painting a picture that is, perhaps, a bit more
fair.

Phil Liff-Grieff
[log in to unmask]
La Crescenta, California




-----Original Message-----
From: Conchologists of America List [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
Behalf Of Kurt Auffenberg
Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2000 12:40 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Landsnails - why not as popular??


Please let me assure those potential land snail collectors that after a lot
of years studying land snails, I've had to utilize soft anatomy as a last
resort for identification on very few occasions.  Unless a collector
develops a agonizingly slow death-wish and pursues Succineidae (amber
snails), some helicids, or slugs, dissection is not required.