Abstract
THIS laboratory manual on the snail now studied in most eastern universities as a type of gastropod mollusc is itself a model of what such a book ought to be. It is well illustrated, and contains not only a description of the anatomy of the subject and practical directions for its dissection, but also a synopsis of the eight Indian species of the genus Pila, and some interesting bionomical notes. From these it is plain that the apple-snail is the most versatile of the gastropods—or indeed, of all Mollusca. Usually a denizen of fresh-water, it can, in the case at least of P. globosa, tolerate that which is brackish; usually vegetarian, it may eat dead animal matter. It has both aquatic and aerial respiration at its command; it can swim as well as crawl in water, and yet can travel overland and even climb trees, while it lays its eggs on land, and specimens left dry in a cupboard rivalled the celebrated desert-snail of th British Museum by being found alive after five years.
Pila (the Apple-Snail).
Dr.
Baini
Prashad
By. (The Indian Zoological Memoirs on Indian Animal Types, edited by Dr. K. N. Bahl, No. 4.) Pp. xi + 83. (Lucknow: Methodist Publishing House, 1932.) 2 rupees.
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Pila (the Apple-Snail) . Nature 130, 760 (1932). https://doi.org/10.1038/130760c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/130760c0