Man and Mollusc's Data Base of Edible Molluscs

HELICIDAE

• Agriculture Permits: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/permits/plantpest/snails_slugs.html
• Philippe and Julien Thomas: FranceEscargot Passion.
  
• Institut für Deutsche Schneckenzucht Germany (German institute for heliciculture)
  
• Femorale: This site has an excellent page with links to numerous helicidae species images
• Escargot Funcia
• Raising Snails:USA: The Alternative Farming Systems Information Center, National Agricultural Library. USA All the information in one site from raising snails to the legilations on raising snails.
• Institute Cherasco: ... The organization had its offices in the Institute of Breeding of edible snails and
  Cherasco became the point of reference for the Italian breeding activity.
• Escargot.fr : Francevotre artisan specialiste de la culture et de la ... Vente de plats cuisin?s d'escargots. Pr?sentation de l'?levage et de l'entreprise.
  
• Heliciculture - Snail farming UK: Heliciculture. Snail farming in the UK. Since making this website, I discover
  that "heliculture" is not the correct term for snail farming. ...
• Snailfarming In Australia: Raise snails for your own consumption or for a commercial business. The time is
  right to utilise a natural food resource that is literally at your feet! ...
  
  

Caution:

• It is important to clean out and treat the snails before cooking it, as snails may eat carrion and fungi. These could contain toxins and be harmful to man.
• CAUTION! Be very careful before deciding to use the snails from your own back yard or front yard for your next dinner party. Try to ascertain if anyone has used snail bait for eradication of snails in you neighborhood.
  Your neighbor's may be using snail poison. These snails could then migrate to your yard. REMEMBER! Some snails may only contain very small amounts of poison; so small as to not be lethal to the snail-but there may be enough residual poison that if you consumed enough of these snails IT COULD KILL YOU!
  If in doubt, Please choose to be snail smart and buy your escargot from a reliable source or collect in known safe areas. These snails are a major pest and many areas use posions; So, PLEASE BEWARE!

Trivia:

• Concerning History of Snail Cultivation
• The old French used to feed their snails, picked up from nature, fine herbs, especially thyme. Because of its antiseptic properties, thyme eliminated the toxins and intensified the meat flavor.
• There are some reports of snail being farms by the Romans during their conquest of Europe. The snails were fed with flour and wine before they were slaughtered in older to enhance the meat flavor that was served to the emperors.
• A good heliciculture Links Page

• Archelix punctata
• Syn: Otala punctata
  (Müller, 1774)
  
  

called "vaqueta" in some parts of Spain, measures about 35mm across the shell.

• Cantareus aspersus
  (Müller, 1774)
• Syn: Helix aspersa

Ghakrux Ragel; Brown garden snail

• Considered both an agricultural pest and a delicacy.
• This is the same species as Helix aspersa (Common Snail, Garden snail, Brown Garden snail)
  

• Cepaea hortensis
  (Muller, 1774)
• Syn: Helix hortensis

white-lip gardensnail; White-lipped Grove Snail; the garden snail

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• introduced into New England in colonial times but not established ( * ) (wrong!, currently established, J.C. pers. obs.)
• Some say that snails with striped shells are not very good to eat . This plus their smaller size make hortensis and nemoralis less popular.
• See different banding patterns of this snail

• Cepaea nemoralis
  (Linnaeus, 1758)
  

• Syn: Helix nemoralis
  (Linnaeus, 1758)

Grovesnail, Brown-lipped snail, wood snail,or the Spanish "vaqueta"

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• Native to Central Europe, introduced into and inhabits many U.S. states, from Massachusetts to California and from Tennessee to Canada

• Eobania vermiculata
  (Müller,1774)
  

• Helix adanensis
• Helix (asemnis)
  adanensis (escargo turc),. PDF file

Adana snail

?? This could be the Helix pomata snail

• Helix aspersa (Müller,1774)

• Syn: Cantareus aspersus

• CAUTION! Be very careful before deciding to use the snails from your own back yard or front yard for your next dinner party. Try to ascertain if anyone has used snail bait for eradication of snails in you neighborhood.
  Your neighbor's may be using snail poison. These snails could then migrate to your yard. REMEMBER! Some snails may only contain very small amounts of poison; so small as to not be lethal to the snail-but there may be enough residual poison that if you consumed enough of these snails IT COULD KILL YOU!
  If in doubt, Please choose to be snail smart and buy your escargot from a reliable source or collect in known safe areas. These snails are a major pest and many areas use posions; So, PLEASE BEWARE!
  
• This is a small size snail. The shell diameter can vary from 18 to 30mm and its height from 20 to 30mm. URL

• Helix aspersa maxima

the Gros-Gris; brown gardensnail

• USA:- most widespread land snail worldwide (personal observation, J.C.)

• Helix aperta
  (Born,1778)

burrowing snail; green gardensnail; green escargot snail; Crete it is called "murmúri " ; Roman grunting snail; Japan: MIDORI-ESUKARUGO

• USA: marginal agricultural pest
• Australia Alert: Have you seen a green snail in your garden, market garden, farm or nursery? If so, ring Agriculture Western Australia on (08) 9368 3336.It is olive green, unmarked and white fleshed. It could be a menace to plants of all sorts. We must stop its spread.
  

• Helix cincta
  (O.F.Mueller, 1774)

L’escargot grec

• These snails were possibly eaten during religious ceremonies probably together with mushrooms in the past

• Helix hortensis see
• Syn: Cepaea hortensis

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• introduced into New England in colonial times but not established ( * ) (wrong!, currently established, J.C. pers. obs.)
• Some say that snails with striped shells are not very good to eat . This plus their smaller size make hortensis and nemoralis less popular.
• See different banding patterns of this snail

• Helix lactea
• Syn: Otala lactea
  Iberus alonensis

  (Müller, 1774)
  
  
  

Vineyard snail or Milk snail or Spanish snail

• Originally from North Africa and Spain. Introduced to SE U.S., Bermuda, Cuba, and elswhere.
• Otala lactea or Helix lactea is popular with Italians, and is sometimes called the "vineyard snail," "milk snail," and "Spanish snail".
• USA: locally introduced into CA, TX, MS, FL, GA, Sullivans Island (SC)
• Considered better tasting than aspersa by many and just as easy to feed (vegetables and fruit diet) and breed as the helix aspersa

• Helix lucorum
  (Linnaeus, 1758)

Turk snail; sometimes "escargo turc,"

• Helix nemoralis (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Syn: Cepaea nemoralis

wood snail, the
Spanish "vaqueta,

• Native to Central Europe, introduced into and inhabits many U.S. states, from Massachusetts to California and from Tennessee to Canada

• Helix nucula
  (Pfeiffer 1859)
  

• Helix pomatia (Linnaeus, 1758)
  

• Helix pomatia pomatia
  (Linnaeus,1758)
  

Edible Snail; Bourgogne Snail; Roman Snail

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• this European snail and is preferred by many over Helix aspersa for its flavor and its larger size, as the "escargot par excellence."
• the "Roman snail," "apple snail," "luna," "La Vignaiola," the German "Weinbergschnecke," the French "escargot de Bourgogne" or "Burgundy snail," or "gros blanc,"
• USA: Helix pomatia Linnaeus, 1758: escargot: introduced at Jackson, MS

• Helix punctata or
  Otala punctata
• Syn: Archelix punctata
  (Müller, 1774)

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• USA: introduced into New Orleans in 1918 in Jackson Square
• also called Eobania v. or Helix v., the "vinyala," "mongeta," or "xona"--measures about 25mm. It is found in Mediterranean countries and was introduced into Louisiana and Texas.

• Iberus alonensis
  (Férussac, 1801)

the Spanish "cabretes" or "xona fina,"

• Otala lactea:
  
• Syn: Helix lactea

• Originally from North Africa and Spain. Introduced to SE U.S., Bermuda, Cuba, and elswhere.
• Otala lactea or Helix lactea is popular with Italians, and is sometimes called the "vineyard snail," "milk snail," and "Spanish snail".
• USA: locally introduced into CA, TX, MS, FL, GA, Sullivans Island (SC)
• Considered better tasting than aspersa by many and just as easy to feed (vegetables and fruit diet) and breed as the helix aspersa

• Otala punctata
• Syn:Archelix punctata

"vaqueta" in some parts of Spain

• Otala vermiculata
  (Müller, 1774)

See: Helix vermiculata for photo and information

Syn:

• Helix vermiculata (Müller, 1774)
• Otala vermiculata (Müller, 1774

• Theba pisana
  (Müller,1774)

• USA: introduced into CA but eradicated (?), pest
• This snail is a serious garden pest and it is the "white snail" that California once eradicated by using flamethrowers to burn off whole areas