Hi, Paolo,
When certain species of intertidal gastropods are out of the water, I have seen them seal themselves up with their opercula tightly closed against their shells with the shell attached to the substrate, aperture down, with mucus. Occasionally these shells get knocked off their perch. It could also be that the specimens you observed just sealed themselves up to avoid dessication and fell off.
Aloha,
Dave Lum
Pearl City
>From: "Paolo G. Albano" <
[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: Conchologists List <
[log in to unmask]>
>To:
[log in to unmask]
>Date: Tue, 4 Jan 2005 04:19:00 -0800
>
>During my trip to the Maldives in August 2004, I
>observed a strange fact which I here report hoping
>someone can help me explaining it.
>
>1. I found a live Drupa lobata with its aperture
>upwards on sand near hard substrates, It was
>motionless. Put in acquarium it reacted and allowed
>photography of the animal.
>
>2. A live nerita polita stranded on the beach, but
>when put in a small box with seawater it promptly was
>resurrected and moved around actively.
>
>They seemed dead (and they would have certainly died
>in the conditions they were found) but they were not.
>
>Any ideas?
>
>Thanks,
>Paolo
>
>=====
>Paolo G. ALBANO
>Bologna, ITALY
>Webmaster of Societ $B!& (BItaliana di Malacologia website at http://www.aicon.com/sim
>
>__________________________________________________
>Do You Yahoo!?
>Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
>http://mail.yahoo.com
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
[log in to unmask] - a forum for informal discussions on molluscs
>To leave this list, click on the following web link:
>http://listserv.uga.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=conch-l&A=1
>Type your email address and name in the appropriate box and
>click leave the list.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------