by Matt Law

Kingdom - Animalia
Phylum - Mollusca
Class - Gastropoda
Order - Stylommataphora
Family - Discidae
Genus - Discus
Species - Discus rotundatus
Syn. Goniodiscus rotundatus Müller 1774

Description
Discus rotundatus is a land snail with a discoidal shell, 5.5 - 7 mm broad, with 5.5-6 narrow, tightly coiled whorls and a distinct keel at the periphery (Kerney and Cameron 1979: 102). In life, the shell is a pale yellowish brown, with reddish brown transverse stripes. The shell has coarse ribbing, a wide, deep umbilicus, and is very flattened (Cameron 2003: 22, 30).

Habitat
Moist, sheltered places (Kerney and Cameron 1979: 102). Common in Britain, especially in woods and hedges (Cameron 2003: 49). The shell is frequently found as a Holocene sub-fossil in the British Isles (Davies 2008: 176).

Range and Distribution
Throughout W. and C. Europe. Introduced by man throughout Scandinavia (Kerney and Cameron 1979: 102), and has been recorded in Turkey (Örstan 2003: 27).

References

Cameron, R., 2003: Land Snails in the British Isles (Shrewbury: Field Studies Council)

Davies, P., 2008: Snails: Archaeology and Landscape Change (Oxford: Oxbow)

Kerney, M.P., and Cameron, R.A.D., 1979: A Field Guide to the Land Snails of Britain and North-west Europe (London: William Collins Sons and Co)

Örstan, A. 2003. The first record of Discus rotundatus from Turkey. Triton, 7, 27

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