Friday, April 1, 2011

Desert Snails: Bowerbirds use shells as decoration


The dead sunbleached shells of desert land snails make a tempting addition to the mating bower of a Western Bowerbird. This splendid structure was photographed near Mimili in the Everard Ranges, South Australia by Dennis Allely. The walls of the bower are woven from sticks, the green objects are mostly old eroded glass and Quandong Berries  The snail species are possibly Sinumelon pedasum and/or S. mugravesi.
This part of South Australia is truly awash with hardy desert snail species. I visit the area fairly regularly and I always come away astounded by the quantity and diversity of the desert land snail fauna down there.

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