THE SHELL-BACKED GARDEN SNAIL

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22419, 4 June 1938, Page 22

THE SHELL-BACKED GARDEN SNAIL

TO THE EDITOB OF THE PRESS. Sir,—l am seeking information about the shell-backed garden snail (Helix sp.) in Christchurch. Forty years ago and previously these snails were common in the area to the east of Fitzgerald avenue and the north of Worcester street. As a child I had never seen one,, and a cardboard box lull of snails showing a variety of markings was brought to Strowan, on the Papanui road, for my edification. After a day or so, the novelty of their emergence from and retraction into their shells wore off, and I turned them loose in the garden, where they were never seen again—they failed to establish themselves. At that time there was, I believe, another patch of them in Beckenham. Twenty years ago they were still plentiful in the garden of the Hon. E. C. J. Stevens at the north end of Fitzgerald avenue. I moved a number of plants from there to Ham, and later found that these were heavily infested with snails. I killed a number and then decided to leave the others as 'an experiment, being of the opinion that if snails would thrive m the garden, they would already have been there. Within a few months they all disappeared, though. the thick Indian azalea bushes in which they had lived would seem to have afforded an ideal habitat for them. Would any of your readers who know of any shell-backed snails near Christchurch at the present time please let me know? Do they still survive m the area to the north of Worcester street? If so, it would seem either that there is some soil constituent in that area which is particularly helpful to snails or that they find the sandy nature of the soil to their liking. If the latter, then one would expect to find them prevalent in other Sandy areas locally, and this I know was not the case in the past, at any < rate. I should appreciate any information.— Yours, etc., EDGAE p _ STEAa June 3, 1938.