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silk hive
silk hive (Euconulus trochulus)
Illinois Status: common, native
Photo © Marla Coppolino
Features and Behaviors
FEATURES
Euconulus trochulus, the silk hive, is a yellowish-white, beehive-shaped shell with six to seven whorls. The silk hive shell is about one-tenth of an inch wide and tall, and contains an animal that is blue above and pale below. The shell’s opening (aperture) is narrow, and the lip is not reflected as it is in snails of the family Polygryidae. Euconulus trochulus has also been known as Conulus chersinus trochulus, C. trochulus, and Euconulus chersinus trochulus. Recent genetic work has revealed that shell characteristics may not be a reliable way to identify these animals.
BEHAVIOR
Like most snails, the silk hive can be found in found in leaf litter, under loose bark, and on decaying logs in forested areas near streams. It is uncommon to find silk hive snails among others of their species.
Illinois Range
Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Order: Stylommatophora
Family: Euconulidae
Habitats
leaf litter, under loose bark, and on decaying logs in forested areas near streams
