Littorina scutulata

Littorina scutulata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
(unranked): clade Caenogastropoda
clade Hypsogastropoda
clade Littorinimorpha
Superfamily: Littorinoidea
Family: Littorinidae
Genus: Littorina
Species: L. scutulata
Binomial name
Littorina scutulata
Gould, 1849
Synonyms[1]

Littorina lepida Gould, 1849

Littorina scutulata is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Littorinidae, the winkles or periwinkles.[1]

This species lives lower on rocks than does L. planaxis, and migrates up and down rocks with the tide. It crawls out of tidepools at night. Often, it hides at low tide in cracks or barnacle shells. The waves on both sides of the foot are out of phase with one another (ditaxic). It feeds mainly on diatom films, microscopic algae, lichens, etc., and will also feed on Pelvetia, Ulva, and other larger algae. L. scutulata breeds in all seasons except summer. Eggs are laid underwater, individually packaged in flattened capsules within a sausage-shaped gelatinous mass coiled in a spiral and holding over 2000 eggs. Its eye anatomy is similar to that of the land snail Helix aspera. In Oregon, over 10% of individuals harbor parasitic flukes.[2]Leptasterias hexactis feeds on this snail. It is distributed from Kodiak Island, Alaska, to Bahia de Tortuga, Baja California.[2]

Specimen living in human knee

In a minor beach accident seven year old Paul Franklin from Orange County, California fell onto a nest of snail’s eggs, Paul's father Ken stated. After the knee had shown infection symptoms - it had swelled to the size of an orange, turned black and began oozing pus - Paul's mother Rachel popped the bizarre growth like a big pimple and discovered a tiny black sea snail in its exudate.

According to biologist Dan Riskin, Littorina scutulata can survive for weeks in a wide variety of water temperatures and salt levels and the subcutaneous tissue of the human body is a mirror of these environmental conditions.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 Littorina scutulata Gould, 1849. Reid, David G. (2009). Littorina scutulata Gould, 1849. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=445657 on 6 June 2010.
  2. 1 2 Littorina scutulata Rosario Beach Marine Laboratory Littorina scutulata at the Encyclopedia of Life
  3. ↑ "Mother who popped bizarre growth on her son's leg is horrified to find a SEA SNAIL inside". dailymail.co.uk. October 29, 2015. Retrieved June 15, 2018.


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