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Gastropods are a class of animals which have no backbone. In most but not all cases gastropods have a shell, which is created by the mantle. Gastropods are commonly known as snails and slugs. They live in the oceans, on land and in freshwater.
This taxonomic class of invertebrate animals with the scientific name Gastropoda is the largest and most successful class within the mollusks, having 60,000–75,000 named living species, and being second only to the insects in terms of diversity and in terms of the number of named species within one class of animals. Living species of gastropods range in size from adult animals that are less than one millimeter (0.039 in) in length, to a few species that are almost a meter (39.4 in) in length.
Scientists who study gastropods (or other mollusks) are known as malacologists. 2,400 years ago, Aristotle, in his History of Animals, wrote about the sea snails from which the dye Tyrian purple is extracted; the genus Murex still bears the name he used. Many gastropods are important food sources, others have human relevance in other ways, ranging from their shells being used as a source of mother of pearl through to their being vectors for several diseases.
Aquamarine or sea green is used on this portal because gastropods first evolved in the oceans, colonized both land and freshwater habitats, and need the presence of water or water vapor in order to be active. The image which is currently the icon for the gastropod portal shows an individual of Helix pomatia, an air-breathing land snail which is well known to gourmets in the Western world because it is one of the European species that is eaten as escargot.
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Geomalacus maculosus, commonly known as the Kerry Slug or Kerry spotted slug, is a species of large air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the family Arionidae, the roundback slugs. An adult slug generally measures about 7–8 cm (2.8–3.2 in) in length, and is a dark greyish colour with yellowish spots.
The distribution of this species includes wild habitats in southwestern Ireland, in north-west Spain and from central to northern Portugal. It favours acidic soil and high humidity environments, and is mostly nocturnal or crepuscular, although is active on overcast days in Ireland. It eats lichens, liverworts, mosses and fungi growing on boulders and on trees. (Read more...)
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Adolph Cornelis van Bruggen, also known as A. C. van Bruggen or Dolf van Bruggen (born 9 July 1929) is a malacologist, entomologist and botanist from the Netherlands. He has been interested in the tropics and tropical Africa has dominated his broad scientific interest for more than 50 years now.
He is especially expert in the land snail families Streptaxidae, Achatinidae and Maizaniidae, and as of 2008, had written 655 scientific publications. (Read more...)
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... that Acmella nana (shell pictured) is the smallest known land snail?
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... that the fragile shell of the glassy nautilus Carinaria cristata (pictured) was at one time considered to be worth more than its weight in gold?
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... that Spurilla neapolitana (pictured) defends itself with stinging cells derived from the sea anemones it eats?
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... that Pupilla pratensis (shell pictured) has long been neglected in the malacological literature?
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... that there are 12 endemic species of freshwater snails in Lake Skadar (map pictured)?
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... that the land snail Balea sarsii (shell pictured) has been overlooked for a long time?
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... that the land snail Vertigo ultimathule (shell pictured) is endemic to the northernmost part of Scandinavia?
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... that flashes of light emitted by the sea snail Hinea brasiliana (shell pictured) may act as a "burglar alarm"?
- ... that Candidula arganica, a snail found in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, lives primarily in meadows?
- ... that Candidula spadae, a snail native to Central Italy, is at risk in part because of tourist activities?
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... that the subterranean freshwater snail Hauffenia sp. from Slovakia (shell pictured) has been an undescribed species since the 1980s?
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... that land snails of the genus Abbottella (Abbottella calliotropis shell pictured) live on the islands of Hispaniola and Cuba?
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... that the snail Tonna galea (pictured) is one of very few species of prosobranch gastropods that are luminescent?
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... that the land snail Notodiscus hookeri (shell pictured) has unique shell structure among all gastropods?
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... that the microscopic cave snail Zospeum tholussum (pictured) is so slow that in a week's time it may only move a few millimeters or centimeters in circles?
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... that the land snail Omalonyx convexus (pictured) can also be found submerged among macrophytes?
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... that the malacologist S. Peter Dance said the shell of Pterynotus loebbeckei, (pictured), was the "most exquisite natural object" he had ever seen?
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... that the only brackish-water pachychilid species, Faunus ater (shell pictured), has a shell that is unique among all the Cerithioidea?
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... that the owl limpet (pictured) maintains a small meadow of algal turf for its own exclusive use?
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- 16 July 2010: A new subfamily is established within the Chondrinidae.
- A list of new Wikipedia articles about gastropods, including those that simply mention the words snail, slug, conch, etc. A bot creates this list, usually every three days.
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The snail Indrella ampulla from a tropical rainforest habitat in India. The shell in this species is reduced: the body cannot be fully retracted into the shell. The mantle is partly visible here as an area of off-white color under the edge of the shell. The rest of the body (head with retractile tentacles and most of the foot) is red. The foot fringe is off-white, with narrow black lines. The large caudal mucous pit is visible at the end of the foot.
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WikiProject Gastropods
WikiProject Marine life
WikiProject Bivalves
WikiProject Cephalopods
WikiProject Fisheries and Fishing
Wikipedia:WikiProject Gemology and Jewelry
Wikipedia:WikiProject Food and drink
(Complete list of WikiProjects)
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- Gastropoda, snail, slug, land snail, freshwater snail, sea snail, sea slug
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- Gastropod shell, operculum, radula, love dart, clausilium
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- Digestive system of gastropods, respiratory system of gastropods, circulatory system of gastropods, excretory system of gastropods, sensory organs of gastropods, nervous system of gastropods, reproductive system of gastropods
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- Taxonomy of the Gastropoda (Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005), and also, changes in the taxonomy of gastropods since 2005
- Gastropods with significant positive human impact
- Gastropods with significant negative human impact
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