Mollusks • Earth.com

Heath snail

(Helicella itala)

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Description

Helicella itala is a species of medium-sized, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Geomitridae, the hairy snails and their allies. The common Heath snail is a West Palearctic species found in the British Isles, France, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, and Poland. English common name is Heath snail. The animals live on dry, exposed habitats, such as roadsides and railway embankments, vegetated sand dunes and rock boulders and short grassland. They rise up to 2000 m above sea level in the Alps and Pyrenees. Helicella is a genus of small to medium-sized, air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the subfamily Helicellinae of the family Geomitridae, the hairy snails and their allies.

Taxonomic tree:

Domain:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum:
Class: Gastropoda
Order:Stylommatophora
Family:Geomitridae
Genus:Helicella
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