March of the Snails
Despite being in water most of the time, some aquatic snails are able to migrate short distances from water. This is typical of pulmonate, or lung-breathing aquatic snails (shown today). It is not uncommon on temperate days to observe this on rocks or woody material along the edge of streams. The species above is the left-handed pond snail (Physella acuta). Its common name comes from the direction of the shell's spiral or twist. The snail above was observed grazing through mud for food and also copulating. This snail is not a native Pennsylvanian or American species. It is believed to have been introduced from Europe with plants and animals kept in aquariums. At this time, the impact of this snail on our native wildlife is not known.
Today's photograph was taken along Oil Creek in Oil Creek State Park in Venango County by WPC Zoologist Ryan Evans. Ryan is conducting a multi-year survey project to inventory the aquatic snails of the state.
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