Banded Graveyard
Nikon D5200 Tokina 100mm f16 1/60 ISO 200
A song thrush had a fine old time with the banded snails. Result, the most colourful graveyard you’ll see this side of Mexico.
This is not a boring snail
White-lipped Banded Snail – Cepaea hortensis. Nikon D5200 Tokina 100mm f22 1/250 ISO 200
In the garden we only have brown lipped banded snails (Cepaea nemoralis) but a short distance away it’s all white lipped snails. So what? Well although the colour of the lip of the shell is diagnostic of the species, variation in banding patterns makes this one of the most variable species we know. People have made careers out of studying this snail.
Brown lips
Brown-lipped Snail, Cepaea nemoralis. Also known as the Banded Snail, possibly the most colourful and variable snail in the UK. This shell is rather decayed so you can’t clearly see the brown lip in this shot.
Nikon D5200 Tokina 100mm f22 1/250 ISO 100
Slug Wars
Nikon D5200 Tamron 70-300mm f32 130mm +68mm 1/60 ISO 1000
I had this down as a Yellow Slug – Limacus flavus, but David Nicholls of NatureSpot helped me identify it as Limacus maculatus. Both species are quite variable but the Yellow Slug is more lemon yellow and has a clear pale line along the keel, from the tail to at least half way along the body. This species has been expanding its range across Britain and seemingly replacing Limacus flavus along the way. It may be under-recorded due to confusion with Limacus flavus but it is expanding its range. These changes are one reason why citizen science nature recording sites such as NatureSpot (for Leicestershire and Rutland only) and iRecord (all the UK) are so important.
Eggs, likely from the same specimen:
AJC Photography 