German hairy snails are disappearing from London’s River Thames
Meet the German Hairy Snail (Pseudotrichia rubiginosa): a small mollusk with a hairy shell that lives, among other places, along the Thames in England. Researchers believe its characteristic hairs help the strange creature live in its humid riverside environments by allowing it to sweat out moisture. As it releases this excess moisture, the slime becomes stickier, allowing the snail to hold on to slippery riverside debris and plants it eats.
However, the snail needs additional support. The German hairy snail is one of the UK’s most threatened molluscs, with its original habitat along the river reduced to limited, disconnected areas. That’s why conservationists, environmentalists and citizen scientists in London began carrying out surveys to investigate the situation.
They are trying to better understand the snail’s presence in the city and contribute to future conservation efforts.
“These surveys will help us understand how the snail is doing and how we can protect it – not only securing its future for years to come, but also helping to safeguard London’s green spaces for people and wildlife for future generations,” Joe Pecorelli, freshwater conservation program manager at the Zoological Society of London, said in a society statement.
According to the fossil record, the German hairy snail has existed in the UK at least since the Stone Age and possibly even since the last ice age. At the time, continental Europe was still connected to Britain and the River Thames was connected to the German Rhine.
“This charming little snail has made our river banks and wetlands their home for thousands of years – but is unfortunately now very rare in the UK, potentially restricted to a few sites along the River Thames,” added Pecorelli.
The snail is known to exist throughout Europe. A 2013 assessment identified eastern Russia, the Baltic Sea islands and Germany, where the mollusk is considered endangered, as part of its range.
Having a better idea of ​​the distribution of this funky snail is important for its survival and could rally efforts to save and restore London’s river habitats. Clearer waterways will only benefit all other native animals, including the European eel, seals and short-snouted seahorse, which live in London’s busy waterways.
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