Malacology
Malacology is the study of mollusks. This includes animals like octopus, snails, slugs, and clams. It is the second largest phylum of animals, making them one of the most successful groups on the planet. There are over 80,000 described species of mollusks with many more left to be discovered. Mullusca is composed of 8 recognized classes including Cephalopoda, Gastropoda, Polyplacophora, Scaphapoda, Monoplacophorans, the Aplacophorans, Caudofoveata and Solenogastres, and Bivalvia.
Eastern White Slipper Snail
Say, 1822
Crepidula plana
Class:
Order:
Family:
Gastropoda
Littorinimorpha
Calyptraeidae
Shell Information
Length (mm): 30-43
Dextral
Chirality:
This shell is a very flat shell that can sometimes be concave depending on the surface that the shell grew on. The internal platform typically takes up a little less than half the length of the shell. It is usually a white shell.
Description:
Ecological Information
Distribution:
Depth (m):
Nova Scotia to Florida
0 to 110 meters
Diet:
Suspension feeder
Habitat:
Marine; Shallow water; often associated with hermit crabs and horse shoe crabs
Misc. Facts
These shell can typically be found on the inside of dead shells especially those hosted by hermit crabs and on the shells of horseshoe crabs. They feed on the excess food scraps and waste of these crabs.
Citations
MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Crepidula plana Say, 1822. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=160230 on 2021-06-10
Morris, P. A. (1987). A field guide to shells: Atlantic and Gulf coasts and the West Indies (3rd ed.). Houghton Mifflin.
Rosenberg, G. 29. Malacolog 4.1.1: A Database of Western Atlantic Marine Mollusca. [WWW database (version 4.1.1)] URL http://www.malacolog.org/