Our British Snails

by J. W. Horsley

In all cases “live shells,” i.e. shells in which the animal is alive, are to be chosen; but, when these cannot be procured, “dead shells,” which have not lost their lustre, or their colour, especially those of rare species, should be preserved.

With regard to the mode of Preserving Shells.

1. No attempt should be made to clean them, or to remove the furry skin, more or less thick, with which they are often covered, beyond removing with a soft brush any mud or sand adhering to them.

2. The animals of Land and Freshwater shells may be killed by immersing them for a few minutes in boiling water, after which the bodies may be easily extracted whole with any suitable instrument, e.g., a fork or a pin, according to size. Hot water should not be used with marine shells: it often destroys their lustre. They should be buried, if time permits, in sand, or other dry material, until the animal dries up (in small shells) or rots (in large specimens); or they may be drowned in cold fresh water, and hung up in the air to dry or rot away. In the former case, if an operculum (with which some species, both marine and land, close their mouths, more or less partially) exists, it will, generally in the case of land shells, remain in its place, adhering to the shell. In the latter, the decayed matter should be washed out, and the operculum, if any, replaced and fixed, say, on cotton filling the shell. This applies equally to land shells.

3. Care should be taken not to injure the edge or lip of the mouth of univalves, or the ligament of the hinge of bivalves. When bivalves gape on dying in water, or if the ligament be broken, the valves should be closed and tied together. If the ligament of a gaping bivalve should become dry and stiff, it can be softened by putting it in water.

4. The localities in which each species is found should be noted, and, in the case of dredging, the depth of water.

With regard to the mode of packing Shells for Transport.

All solid shells may be wrapped in one or two folds of paper of any kind. Fragile and minute shells should be put, generally separately, into a box or bottle—with or without cotton, as required. Such packets may be heaped up in any box, heavy shells at the bottom, without pressure, and any blank filled at the top with paper or other elastic material. Sawdust injures the lustre of many species.

Two books on shells should be procured at an early stage of the collector’s career, which will give not only minute descriptions of all our land and freshwater shells and their varieties, but also plates of illustrations. These are the Collector’s Manual, by L. E. Adams, 2nd ed., published by Taylor Brothers of Leeds; and Rimmers’ Land and Fresh Water Shells, published by George Grant of Edinburgh.

THE END.