Bulimus obscurus. The Dull Twist Shell.—Common during the summer and autumn months on the trunks of trees, especially the beech, and at other seasons under stones and dead wood, as well as in moss on old walls, but when very young it often escapes notice as a shell. The Rev. Revett Sheppard, in a paper in the 'Transactions of the Linnean Society,' says:—"These snails, particularly in their young state, show great sagacity and ingenuity by covering themselves with a coat adapted to the different situations in which they are found, and when so covered it is almost impossible for any other than a conchological eye to discover them. If its abode be on the trunk of a tree covered with lichen, then is the epidermis so constructed as to cause the shell to resemble a little knot on the bark of the tree covered with such substance. If on a smooth tree, from whose bark issue small sessile buds, as is frequently the case, it will pass off very well for one of them, and on a dry bank or the lower part of the body of a tree splashed with mud, its appearance will be that of a misshapen pointed piece of dirt." When the shell is fully developed, this disguise is less perfect, although the coating of extraneous matter is still conspicuous.
It is somewhat curious that none of the Sussex lists include the allied Bulimus acutus, which, according to Mr. Gwyn Jeffreys, is to be found on downs and sand-hills on the sea-coast from Sutherlandshire to the Channel Islands, as well as throughout Wales and Ireland There can be little doubt that it occurs in Sussex, and will be found if looked for in the situations indicated.
Bulimus montanus, or lackhamensis, as it is styled by Messrs. Forbes and Hanlev, differs from Bulimus obscurus chiefly in size, being at least four times larger. 1 have specimens procured at Selborne, Hants, and should therefore expect to hear of its occurrence in Sussex, where it has possibly been overlooked.
Pupa secale vel juniperi. The Common Chrysalis Shell. — Plentiful on the South Downs wherever juniper-bushes occur. I have specimens from Newtimber. In the "Home Pit," near Lewes, it is common under loose chalk-stones.—U. It is found
