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Sterkii’s granule snail
Sterkii’s granule snail (Guppya sterkii)
Illinois Status: uncommon, native
Photo © Marla Coppolino
Features and Behaviors
FEATURES
Sterkii’s granule snail has a tiny (one twentieth of an inch wide and half as tall!), translucent, very round shell, with three to four whorls. The shell is very thin and fragile, with a wide aperture (opening of the shell) and thin lip. Taxonomically similar snails include Conulus sterkii, Euconulus sterkii, Hyalina sterkii, and Zonites sterkii. This snail is also referred to as the brillant granule.
BEHAVIORS
Sterkii’s granule snail is active in the warms months and is most easily found in the springtime and fall after rain. This tiny snail lives in leaf litter of rocky areas with damp soils and limestone bedrock. Cool, moist, forested habitats are critical for this species, as is with many land snails. Little is known about its distribution in Illinois, but its habitat requirements suggest it could be found near the Mississippi River.
Illinois Range
Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Order: Stylommatophora
Family: Euconulidae
Habitats
leaf litter of rocky areas with damp soils and limestone bedrock
