Animals soft, inarticulated, furnished with an anterior head, projecting or salient; most frequently with eyes and tentaculæ, or possessing, at their summit, arms disposed in the form of a coronet: their mouth either short, elongated, or tubular, exsertile, and generally armed with hard parts. Mantle diversified, having its edges free on the sides of the body, or the lobes united, forming a sack, which in part envelopes the animal; gills or respiratory organs various, circulation double, one particular, the other general; heart unilocular, sometimes with the auricles divided, and very distant; no medullary cord along the body, but scattered nerves and ganglions. Twenty-two families.
Some genera of this family are without a testaceous covering, mentioned only to preserve the family entire.
Animal. Body enclosed in a shell, winged before, two opposite wings, somewhat retractile, inserted at the sides of the mouth, head distinct, mouth terminal, placed at the junction of the fins; without eyes.
Shell. Symmetrical, very thin and transparent, valves unequal, flat above, convex below, open like a cleft anteriorly, summit truncated and tridentated posteriorly. Inhabits the Mediterranean. Two species.
Animal. Body free, naked, more or less elongated, tapering to the rear, head very distinct; provided with six, long, conical, retractile tentaculæ, separated into two groups of three each; mouth altogether terminal and vertical, eyes sessile, rudiment of a foot under the neck.
This is a molluscous animal without any testaceous covering, but is here placed as leading to other genera which have shells. Inhabits the Indian seas. Two species.
Animal. Body oblong, gelatinous, contractile; a head in front with two wings, and the posterior part enveloped in a shell, head distinct, projecting and round; two eyes; mouth in the form of a small beak; destitute of tentaculæ; two, opposite, membranaceous, pellucid, and cordated wings, placed at the base of the neck.
Shell. Pyramidal, triangular, of a gelatinous or cartilaginous substance, very thin and transparent; aperture obliquely truncated. Inhabits the South American seas. Two species.
Animal. Body soft, oblong, two branchial fins situated at the base of the neck; posterior part of the body spiral, and enveloped in a shell.
Shell. Thin, fragile, papyraceous, spiral, the whorls reunited in a planorbis form, and deeply and largely umbilicated on one side; aperture large and entire. Inhabits the North seas. One species.
Animal. Body oblong, gelatinous, pellucid, enclosing a shell; head sessile; two eyes, and two retractile tentacula; mouth with a retractile proboscis; two, opposite, oblong, ovate, branched wings, connate at their posterior base.
Shell. Gelatinous, cartilaginous, very transparent, crystalline, oblong, in shape of a shoe, from which it has derived the name of the slipper, truncated at the summit; aperture lateral and anterior. Inhabits the Mediterranean. One species.
A molluscous animal, without any testaceous covering, and much resembling the genus Clio. Inhabits the Indian seas. One species.
A mollusca similar to the preceding genus, without a shell, but its back covered with a rough or coriaceous skin. Inhabits the Mediterranean. Three species.
Animal. Body creeping, elongated; middle of the back provided its entire length with a detached, multivalve shell; the alternate pieces for the most part longitudinal; sides naked; branchiæ disposed around the body; foot cleft longitudinally by a deep furrow.
Shell. Each valve with striæ radiating from its apex; the margins serrated; the base of the last valve obtuse. The testaceous plates of this genus are never joined like those of the Chiton, so that the animal can move in every direction. Upon the contraction of the animal after death, however, these valves become nearly united. Inhabits the seas of New Holland. Two species.
Animal. Body creeping, ovate oblong, convex, round at both extremities; marginated with a coriaceous skin: the back covered by a longitudinal series of testaceous, transverse, imbricated, and moveable plates; head before, sessile, with the mouth placed below, destitute of tentacula or eyes; branchiæ placed round the body, under the margin of the skin; and orifice at the posterior extremity.
Shell. Eight imbricated valves, nearly smooth, slightly carinated, and rounded at the margins: summit more or less marked and curved by longitudinal elongations. Inhabits the British and American coasts. Sixty-three species.
Animal. Body completely covered by the shell; head with two acute tentaculæ, and the eyes situated at their exterior base; branchiæ placed under the mantle and around the body.
Shell. This numerous and beautiful genus of Linnæus has been subdivided into the several distinct genera of Fissurella, Emarginula, Navicella, Umbrella, Pileopsis, Calyptrea, Crepidula, Parmophora, and Ancylus; each of which possesses sufficiently well-defined characters to authorize a separation, by which they may be more easily distinguished from the still widely extended family of Patella. Oval, conic, or a little depressed, outside green or brown, sometimes radiated with various colours; having divergent striæ and concentric wrinkles, inside glossy, iridescent, with yellow or fawn-coloured, purple, blue, or brown radiations. Inhabits almost every coast. Forty-nine species.
Animal. Body very thick and oval, provided with a dorsal shell; foot large, smooth, and flat, surrounded by a border, anteriorly notched, attenuated behind; head indistinct; four tentacula, the two upper ones thick, short, and truncated, the other two thin, and shaped like pedunculated crests; having foliaceous branchiæ.
Shell. External, orbicular, subirregular, nearly flat, slightly convex above, white, with apex near the middle; margin acute, internal surface rather concave; having a callous disk, coloured, depressed in the centre, surrounded by a smooth border. Inhabits the Indian Ocean. Two species.
Animal. Body creeping, fleshy; mantle and foot expanded; branchiæ placed on the right side; cloak enveloping the shell; neck short, contracted in some species, with an emarginate front, exhibiting the commencement of the inferior tentacula, the upper ones tubular and cloven; gills at the edge of the dorsal plait, mouth provided with a short, retractile proboscis.
Shell. Depressed, oval, oblong, concentrically wrinkled, almost entirely open, rounded and convoluted; the vertex with a single turn. Inhabits the coast of Devonshire in England. Two species.
Animal. Body creeping, thick, oblong-ovate, broad behind, obtuse at the extremities; border of the mantle cleft before, and suspended vertically around; head distinct, and slit below; two conical contracted tentacula, at the base of which are placed the eyes, which are somewhat pedunculated; mouth below, funnel-shaped, oblique, truncated, and concealed; branchial cavity opening anteriorly behind the head by a transverse fissure.
Shell. Oblong, very depressed, slightly convex above, obtuse at extremities, anteriorly channeled by a slight sinus, and having towards the posterior part a small pointed apex, inclined backwards; the lower surface slightly concave. Inhabits the Australian seas. Four species. One fossil.
Animal. Body creeping, with two, conical, tentacular eyes at the external base; mantle large, partly covering the margin of the shell; foot very large and thick.
Shell. Shield-like, conical; summit inclined; the cavity simple, having a notch or hollow cut on its posterior margin; shells of this genus are generally very small. Inhabits the British seas. Five species.
Animal. With the head truncated in front; two conical tentacula, with eyes at their exterior base; mouth simple, terminal, and destitute of jaws; two pectinated branchiæ projecting from the cavity; mantle large, protruding beyond the shell.
Shell. Shield-shaped, conical recurved, summit entire, depressed, concave below, perforated at the summit in the form of a key hole, without a spire; the exterior surface ribbed longitudinally. Inhabits the European and American seas. Twenty-two species.
Animal. With two conical tentacula, and the eyes at their base; branchiæ formed in a row under the anterior margin of the cavity, near the neck.
Shell. Obliquely conical, anteriorly recurved, apex bent, almost spiral; aperture rounded, elliptical, the anterior margin shortest, acute, slightly sinuated; the posterior largest and rounded. One elongated and arched muscular impression, situated under the posterior margin. Inhabits the seas of Europe. Nine species.
Animal. The same as preceding genus.
Shell. This genus derives its common name, “the Cup-and-Saucer Limpit,” by having in the interior cavity a cup-shaped appendage, which is sometimes vertical, and sometimes like a horse-shoe, with a muscular impression of variable form, vertex ending in a small volution; smooth, margin entire, very glossy within, and provided with a laminar plate. Inhabits the Chinese and S. American seas. Nine species.
Animal. Head anteriorly forked, having two conical tentacula, with the eyes placed at their exterior base; mouth simple, destitute of jaws, and situated in the bifurcation of the head; branchiæ with tufts and projecting from the branchial cavity; the mantle never bordering the shell; foot minute, orifice lateral.
Shell. Ovate, or oblong; the back almost always convex, concave beneath; the spire very much inclined towards the margin; the aperture partly closed by a horizontal lamina. Inhabits the American seas. Thirteen species.
Animal. Body creeping, enveloped in the shell; two compressed subtruncated tentacular, with eyes situated at their internal base; foot short, elliptical; somewhat narrower than the body.
Shell. Thin, obliquely conical; aperture oval, with a pointed apex, which very much inclines backwards; margins simple. This is a fresh water shell, found in the lakes of Europe and rivers of America. Five species.
Animal. Body ovate, convex, transversely divided above into two parts; the foot with dilations in the form of wings below; head indistinct; branchiæ situated on the back, greatly behind, and covered by a mantle destitute of a shell. Inhabits the Mediterranean. One species.
Animal. Body ovate, somewhat convex above, and divided into two parts transversely; lateral lobes of the foot very thick; head indistinct, and without tentacula; branchiæ placed on the back.
Shell. Concealed in the mantle, very thin, rolled and spiral on one side; without a columella and spire; aperture very large and wide, dilated at the upper part. Inhabits the British seas. Two species.
Animal. Body oblong-ovate, slight convexity; divided into two portions transverse above, mantle slightly folded posteriorly; visible tentacula; branchiæ dorsal and covered, opening only on the right side.
Shell. Univalve, ovate globular, convolute, no columella, spire not projecting but visible, aperture the whole length of the shell, external margin sharp and smooth. Inhabits the British and American seas. Nineteen species.
Animal. Body creeping, oblong, narrowed in front; and posteriorly widened; area round, sloping, and truncated obliquely; margins folded over the back; four tubular tentacula, disposed in pairs; bronchial operculum inclosing a shell; orifice dorsal, near the branchiæ.
Shell. Oblong, slightly arcuated, thick, callous, and somewhat spiral on both sides, singular in formation, and its characteristic unlike most other shells. Inhabits the Isle of France. Two species.
Animal. Body creeping, oblong, convex above; bordered on each side by a broad mantle, which covers the back when the animal is in repose; head and neck elevated, with four tentacula, the two upper ones ear-shaped, eyes situated near the mouth; dorsal shield semicircular, subcartilaginous, adhering on one side, and covering the branchial cavity.
Shell. Nearly round, left margin somewhat reflected; outer lip acute; yellowish horn colored, with brown radiations, and two concentric bands. Inhabits the Indian seas. Thirty-seven species.
Animal. Cuvier merely mentions that the animal is “furnished with a coriaceous, subrogose shield, with a flat, longitudinal disk beneath; four tentacula retractile, eyes at the tips; orifice for respiration on the right side.”
Shell. Ovate oblong, both margins reflected; very thin, diaphanous, slightly wrinkled, of a pale yellow colour. Inhabits the gardens in Britain and France. Five species.
Animal. Body creeping, elongated, snail shaped, nearly straight; posteriorly separated from the foot, and spirally wound into a shell.
Shell. Small, very thin, depressed, terminated above by a very short spire, the last whorl very large; aperture large, rounded oval; the left margin arched, slightly involute. Inhabits dry places of Europe. Three species.
Animal. Body creeping, elongated, snail shaped, having a shell placed on the posterior extremity; four tentacula, the two longest with their eyes at their tips; respiratory organs behind.
Shell. Very small, external, ear-shaped, apex absolutely spiral, aperture very large and oval, left edge sharp and rolled inward behind. Inhabits the middle provinces of France. Two species.
Animal. Body creeping oblong; middle of the back moderately convex, and shield-shaped; hind part in form of a tail, laterally compressed, acute above; shield ovate, fleshy, adhering at its posterior part, free before, enveloping a shell, with a notch in the centre of its right margin; four tentacula, two posterior largest; respiratory organs, under the notch of the shield, placed between the two tentacula of the right side.
Shell. Ovate, left margin broad and reflected; right margin reflected at top and acute beneath; very thin and pellucid, of a pale yellowish-brown. Inhabits the gardens of Europe. Two species.
Animal. Body oblong, creeping, marginated on all sides; head projecting, the lower part with a prominent margin, two retractile, cylindrical tentacula; two auriform appendages, nearly lateral; mouth beneath, destitute of maxillary processes; respiratory orifices distinct, under the extremity of the body.
Destitute of a shell. Inhabits the gardens of Europe. Two species.
Animal. Of a slightly variable form, the mantle forming at its free edge a kind of ring or thick collar, especially in front, and faintly divided into two lips; foot oval, plane, smooth beneath, inflated and granular below, joined to the visceral club by a narrow peduncle; head sufficiently distinct; anterior tentacula very evident and inflated at top, the posterior very long; the mouth a vertical cleft provided with two labial lobes, a sort of marginal tooth, with a small, oval, lingual club.
Shell. The name Helix was given to this genus from the spiral shape of the shell, which varies much in form, but generally globular, and ventricose, conoid but never turriculated; summit generally obtuse, aperture varying much in size, sometimes very large, sometimes small, always regulated by the turn of the spire; oval, semilunar, more wide than long, edges disunited, entering little into the interior; right lip or margin thickened or reflected inwards. Inhabits the groves and woods both of America and Europe. Two hundred and three species.
The Animal of this and the following genera of this family are precisely the same as in Helix.
Shell. Orbicular, more or less convex or conoidal above; the circumference or periphery angulated or keeled; aperture transverse, contiguous to the axis of the shell; the right margin or lip subangular, often toothed or plaited beneath. Inhabits dry situations in Europe and America. Twenty-two species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Variable in form, but generally subturriculated, oval or oblong, aperture entire, the right lip sharp, never reflected, columella smooth, of which the anterior extremity is always open and truncated. Inhabits South America. Twenty-four species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Somewhat extraordinary in its formation, orbicular, the spire convex and obtuse, aperture round, dentated grinning, turned upwards to the side of the spire, margin of the lip reflected. Lakes in America and the Sandwich Islands. Three species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Terrestrial, distinguished only from the Helix by its columella being transverse callous; much depressed and diminished in thickness at the lower part, subliglobular, imperforate; aperture entire, demioval, margin acute, forming an angle at the lower base of the right lip; operculum corneous. Inhabits groves in Europe. Nineteen species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Cylindrical, generally thick; aperture irregular, semi-ovate, rounded, and subangulated beneath; margins of outer lip nearly equal and reflected outwardly, unconnected at their upper parts; the plait of the columella interposed between them. Most frequently found in moss in Europe and America. Forty species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Cylindrical, generally fusiform; summit obtuse, the last whorl smaller than the preceding; aperture irregular, rounded, oval; margin united, and externally reflected. Inhabits dry situations both in Europe and America. Fifteen species.
Animals of this genus in formation are precisely as the Helix; they are, however, oviparous, producing eggs with the shell containing the animal perfectly matured; they are frequently as large as a pigeon’s egg.
Shell. Oval, sometimes turriculated, oblong; the summit of the spire obtuse, and the last whorl larger than all the others together; aperture oblong, oval, edge disunited; in adults the lip much reflected; columella smooth, with an inflection in the middle, the base entire, not channeled. Inhabits mountainous situations in Europe and America; some beautiful specimens have been found in the woods of Ohio. Sixty-three species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Terrestrial, very thin, pellucid, ovate oblong, with a conical, pointed spire, formed of only one or two whorls; aperture very large and oval, edges disunited; right edge always acute, the left arched, formed by a smooth attenuated columella. The shells of this genus never having their lip thickened or reflected, distinguish them from those of the genus Bulimus, to which they bear a strong resemblance. Inhabits the sides of ditches and lakes, both in Europe and America. Seven species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Solid, thick, and smooth, oval, oblong spire very obtuse, aperture entire, enlarged, ear-shaped, much contracted behind; edges not united, right lip thick and generally reflected outwardly; the left or columella with one or more teeth or callous plaits. This genus derives its name from its resemblance to the ears of certain animals. It is a land shell found chiefly in the East and West India Islands. Sixteen species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Terrestrial, distinguished from the preceding genera by a perfectly round aperture, reflected lip, and horny operculum, summit papillose; left edge having its origin very detached from the spire. Inhabits the East Indies. A few species are found in America. Thirty-eight species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Aquatic, oval, sometimes turreted; spire produced, thin, smooth, edges disunited, the left with a very oblique plait rising on the columella, forming an oval aperture, destitute of an operculum. Inhabits the ponds of America and Europe. Thirty-three species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. General sinistral, oval, oblong, or globular, very smooth, spire prominent, aperture oval, contracted posteriorly, right edge sharp, columella twisting obliquely, and enlarging to join itself to the anterior part of the margin, the whorls turning to the left hand gives this shell the appellation of heterostrophe. Inhabits the ditches of America and Europe. Ten species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Discoid, spire depressed, or involuted almost in the same vertical plane, causing the shell to be depressed on each side, aperture oblong, luniform, axis remote, margin not reflected; no operculum. Inhabits the lakes of America and Europe. Twenty-two species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Turreted; aperture entire, spire slightly pointed, margin of the whorls often surmounted by spires, columella smooth and arched, closed by a thin horn-like operculum; this is a fluviatile shell, often covered by a thick epidermis. Inhabits the rivers of India. Many fine species are found in America. Fifty-four species.
Animal. Much elongated, mantle prolonged into a canal at the left side, but without distinct tube; foot short, oval, with an anterior marginal furrow; head terminated by a depressed proboscidiform muzzle; tentacula very distant, thickly annulated, dilated in the inferior half of their length, and having the eyes at the summit of this dilation; mouth a terminal and vertical slit, without labial tooth, and with a very small tongue; a single long and narrow branchia.
Shell. Distinguished from the preceding genus by having a sinus at the base, and another at the summit; turreted; aperture longitudinal, right lip sharp, base of the columella inclined to the right. Inhabits the rivers of India and Africa. One species is found in America. Six species.
Animal. As preceding genus.
Shell. The Melanopsis is distinguished from the Melanaia, by the columella being callous in the upper part, and the base truncated as in the Achatina, and differs from the Pirena in having only a sinus or widened opening at the base of the shell; aperture covered by a horny operculum. Inhabits the rivers of the Archipelago. Three species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Found only in fresh water; subdiscoid or conoid, umbilicated, spiral, whorls, rounded; angular at the summit; aperture round, not modified by the penultimate whorl; the margins sharp and united; operculum orbicular and horny. Inhabits the rivers of Europe and America. Three species.
Animal. See Helix.
Shell. Generally found in fresh water, though some species have been found where it is salt; conoid covered with a greenish epidermis; the whorls rounded or convex, spiral cavity modified by the last whorl; aperture rounded, oval, oblong, angular at the summit; margins united, acute, never reflected outwards; operculum orbicular and horny. Inhabits the rivers of America and Europe. Thirty-one species.
Animal. Inflated, globular, spiral; foot oval, with a transverse furrow at its anterior edge; head wide; tentacula superior, very long, conical, and pointed; eyes situated at their external base, and supported upon a very apparent peduncle; mouth vertical, situated between two lips disposed in form of a horse-shoe and forming a kind of muzzle; no superior tooth; a bristly lingual band, but not prolonged into the abdominal cavity; a very large respiratory cavity, divided in two by an incomplete horizontal partition.
Animals of this genus are oviparous; producing an egg nearly as large as that of a pigeon, in which is found the young animal complete, and in a perfectly formed shell.
Shell. This genus appears to partake of the characteristics, both of the Paludina and the Natica, being fluviatile and frequently attaining a large size; spire very short, the last whorl much larger than all the others together; globular, very ventricose, umbilicus small, forming a compressed funnel-shaped aperture, without interior callosity; aperture longer than broad, with margins united; columellar lip thickened, projecting and reflected over the umbilicus; operculum horny. Inhabits the rivers of Europe. Thirteen species.