Land Snails of Arizona

Snails in the desert? Surprisingly, Arizona is home to nearly 200 species of native snails and slugs. Many of these mollusks are land snails that belong to the genus Sonorella (talussnails), Oreohelix (mountainsnails), or Ashmunella (woodlandsnails). They can be found in the arid Sonoran Desert to the forest-covered mountains (“sky islands”) in southeast Arizona, up through the highlands and hills of central Arizona, and among the Great Basin Desert and Colorado Plateau regions of northern Arizona.

These snails are very secretive and spend most of their lives in a resting state called estivation, hidden under boulders, fallen trees, and deep within talus slopes. They can be seen feeding and mating following soaking rain storms when air temperatures are cooler and more humid. There is limited information on the status and distribution of many of these native snails, and specific threats to the snails and their habitat.

The Arizona Game and Fish Department would like your help in documenting land snail observations and locations as part of a “citizen science” effort to better understand our diversity of wildlife within the State.

For more information about native snails in Arizona please visit: http://www.azgfd.gov/w_c/nongameandendangeredwildlifeprogram/invertebrates.shtml menos ↑