Oxychilus spp.

Family

Zonitidae

Species

Oxychilus alliarius (Miller, 1822)

O. cellarius (Muller, 1774)

Common name

Oxychilus alliarius: Garlic glass-snail

O. cellarius: Cellar glass-snail

Description

Oxychilus alliarius: This species is approximate 3.4-4 mm high and 5-8 mm wide with 4-4 1/2 whorls. The shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
is smooth, glossy and has wide umbilicusUmbilicus:
A navel-like indentation or depression in the center of the shell. It may be described as open (inside of columella visible), partially closed (partly covered by base of aperture) or completely closed (not visible). The width of the umbilicus is a measure of its greatest diameter.
(navel). The shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
is reddish brown and living animals emit a garlic odor when disturbed. The body color of the animal is blue-black.

Oxychilus cellarius: The narrowly umbilicate shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
of this snail has a heightHeight:
The height of the shell is a measure of the distance between the apex and the most basal part of the shell OR the measurement taken from the apex of the shell to the base, when measured parallel to the axis of the shell.
of approximately 4.2 mm and a width of 9-14 mm. The nearly smooth shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
is depressedDepressed:
Shrunken below a certain level.
and heliciform. As its common name suggests, the shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
has a translucentTranslucent:
Allows light to pass through but prevents the ability to see distinct objects.
pale yellow-brown color with the umbilicusUmbilicus:
A navel-like indentation or depression in the center of the shell. It may be described as open (inside of columella visible), partially closed (partly covered by base of aperture) or completely closed (not visible). The width of the umbilicus is a measure of its greatest diameter.
being even paler and more opaqueOpaque:
Not having the ability to see through an object. (Not transparent or translucent)
. The smooth, glossy umbilicusUmbilicus:
A navel-like indentation or depression in the center of the shell. It may be described as open (inside of columella visible), partially closed (partly covered by base of aperture) or completely closed (not visible). The width of the umbilicus is a measure of its greatest diameter.
is approximately 1/6th the widthWidth:
The width of the shell is the maximum distance across the shell (including the aperture).
of the shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
and the shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
has a total of 5 1/2-6 whorlsWhorls:
Pleural of whorl. A whorl is a complete spiral turn/growth of the shell of a mollusc. The whorls are counted from the apex outwards.
. The entire body of the snail, including the tentaclesTentacles:
Sensory projections on the head end of a mollusc. There are generally two pairs; upper (posterior) and smaller, lower (anterior). The upper pair bears the eyes. In many snails the eyes are located at the tips of this structure; however, in Basommatophoran snail species, the eyes are located at the base of the tentacles.
, is grey, with the sides and the sole being paler. The pneumostomePneumostome:
This is the breathing hole on the right side of the mantle of molluscs. This allows air to pass through to the lung for gas exchange.(See also breathing pore).
has small brown freckles around it. There is a grooveGroove:
An elongate and fairly uniform depression or indentation in the shell or soft parts of a mollusc.
that runs parallel to the edge of the footFoot:
The muscular organ on the undersurface of the body of a mollusc upon which the animal rests or uses to crawl.
. The grooveGroove:
An elongate and fairly uniform depression or indentation in the shell or soft parts of a mollusc.
on each side of the animal has a row of small brown specks running alongside it. Characteristically, this snail does not emit a garlic odor and its body is much paler than other species in the genus (Oxychilus).

These species may be confused with a similar species (Oxychilus draparnaudi) that is carnivorous. The cellar glass-snail (Oxychilus cellarius) shellShell:
A hard, inflexible, calcareous or chitinous structure that vary in size and may either completely encasing the animal, covering some part of it or be internal.
is much larger than that of O. alliarius and smaller than that of O. draparnaudi. Also, the convex spireSpire:
All the coils (whorls) of a shell above the body whorl.
of O. cellarius is flatter than that of O. alliarius.

Native range

Western Europe

Distribution

Oxychilus cellarius:

North America:

• U. S.: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin

Australasia: New Zealand

Canada: Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario

Asia

North Africa

Europe

Oxychilus alliarius:

North America:

• U.S.: Washington
• Canada: British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario

Australasia: New Zealand

South America: Columbia

Asia

North Africa

Europe

Ecology

Oxychilus alliarius: This gregarious species can be found in humid habitats (e.g., meadows, cultivated areas, greenhouses). It consumes living and dead plant material as well as small snails and their eggs.

Oxychilus cellarius: This species prefer to live in association with human activities and can be found in parks, gardens, under rocks, rubbish, wood, cellars, plant material an around greenhouses. This animal can be found year round with peak breeding activities occurring in autumn and they may be found in abundance. They often produce small white eggs that are roughly 1.5 mm in diameter. In addition to vegetation, this species will feed on the eggs of other snails, slugs, and earthworms.

Synonyms

Oxychilus alliarius:

• Helix alliarius Miller, 1822

Oxychilus cellarius:

• Helix cellaria Muller, 1774, Hist. Verm., 2: 28 (wine cellars of Copenhagen).
• Helix glaphyra Say, 1816 [Nicholson's] Amer. Edit. British Encycl., art Conchology, No. 5, pl. 1, fig. 3 (garden in Philadelphia).
• Zonites cellarius Muller, Leidy, 1851, Terr. Moll., 1: 233, pl. 7, fig. 1; W. G. Binney, 1878, Terr. Moll., 5: 112, pl. 2, fig. G (teeth); 1885, Man. Amer. Land Sh., p. 448:, figs. 493, 494.
• Oxychilus cellarius Muller, Ellis, 1926, British Snails, p. 245, pl. 12, figs. 10-12.
• Oxychilus pulchro-striatum MacMillan, 1940, Amer. Midland Nat., 23: 731, figs. 2-4 (Duquesne Bluff, Pittsburg, Pa.)
  

References

Anderson 2005; Hutchinson and Heike 2007; Kerney et al. 1979; Meyer and Cowie 2010; Naggs et al. 2003