Snails of Algerie

Algerie Poste pleased to release a set of two stamps feature snails, Rumina decollata and Helix aspersa, on May 21, 2003.

Rumina decollata is a medium-sized predatory land snail, and feeds readily upon common garden snails and slugs and their eggs.

Rumina decollata, or  Decollate snail,   is  a species of terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Subulinidae. It is a European species that has been introduced in a number of areas worldwide.Decollate snails are tolerant of dry and cold conditions, during which they burrow deep into the soil. They are most active during the night and during rainfall.

Its shell  is long and roughly cone-shaped. Rumina decollata grows to approximately 40 mm in length, and upon reaching mature size, grinds or chips off the end of its own shell by moving its body roughly against hard surfaces, so that the shell takes on a decollate shape, tapering to a blunt end.

Helix aspersa, or  garden snail, is a species of land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Helicidae. This species is native to the Mediterranean region (including Egypt) and western Europe, from northwest Africa and Iberia east to Asia Minor, and north to the British Isles.

The adult bears a hard, thin calcareous shell 25–40 mm in diameter and 25–35 mm high, with four or five whorls. The shell is  generally dark brown or chestnut with yellow stripes, flecks, or streaks.

The body is soft and slimy, brownish-grey, and is retracted entirely into the shell when the animal is inactive or threatened. The head bears four tentacles, the upper two of which have eye-like light sensors, and the lower two of which are smaller, tactile and olfactory sensory structures. The tentacles can be retracted into the head. The mouth is located beneath the tentacles.

Helix aspersa is a herbivore and has a wide range of host plants (It feeds on plants only). Helix aspersa feeds on numerous types of fruit trees, vegetable crops, garden flowers, and cereals. Helix aspersa is a food source for many other animals, including small mammals, many bird species, lizards, frogs, centipedes, predatory insects, and predatory terrestrial snails.