Left specimen shows the foot visible, photographed in situ in Armenoi, Crete. The rest were collected dead taken.
• Λιανοσαλίγκαρος, Λιανοκοχλιός
• Chocolate-band snail, Vermiculate snail
• Caracol de Los Fideos, caracol de bandas de chocolate
Scientific classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Heterobranchia
Order: Stylommatophora
Family: Helicidae
Genus: Eobania
Species: E. vermiculata
Eobania vermiculata is a medium-sized land snail native to the Mediterranean basin, common throughout Greece, including Crete, where it is often found on stone walls, vegetation, and in gardens and olive groves. It is easily recognized by its globular, glossy shell, typically cream to light brown with a distinctive dark chocolate-brown band running around the whorl near the suture — giving it both its scientific name, "vermiculata" (worm-marked), and its common name, "chocolate-band snail."
The species has spread beyond its native range through the horticultural and agricultural trade, with established populations in parts of the United States, Australia, and elsewhere, where it is sometimes regarded as a minor agricultural pest.
Adults typically reach 20–30 mm in shell diameter. Like many Mediterranean helicids, it aestivates during hot, dry periods, sealing its shell aperture with a calcareous epiphragm, often in groups, until conditions improve.
This snail is also collected and consumed as food throughout much of its range, including in Greece and Crete, where it is commonly sold alive at local markets and prepared in traditional dishes.
Armenoi, Crete, Greece
Photo Taken: June 01, 2026
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