Megalobulimus oblongus Müller,1774 One of the most common of Megalobulimus species,but not the largest,with an average length of 100 mm and width of 57 mm. The colour of the shell is yellowish brown with darker brown streaks,when the snail becomes older this fades to brownish white or whitish. The columella,parietal wall and lip are bright pink to pinkish.The lip is folded back and forms a hard ridge. The shell has 6,5 whorls of which the first 1,5 whorls are smooth.The next whorls have slight axial ribbing.The shape is bulimuloid,broad ovate with a blunt apex. A characteristic of this family are the buccal fringes,two flaps on the front of the head,just below the lower pair of tentacles. These probably have the same function as these tentacles. Megalobulimus snails spend a large part of their lives burrowed under the ground,with just the top of the shell showing.In drier periods they burrow even deeper.At night and during rainy weather is when they are the most active. The eggs are,compared to the size of the animal,huge.The length is 25-28 mm and the width 6-7 mm,apparently 1-12 are being laid. However it is hard to imagine 12 eggs fitting in the snail,so that number might just be the total of one season. When mating has taken place it takes 16-18 days for the eggs to be laid,these hatch after 3-4 or 5.5-7 weeks according to two different sources. After about 32 months the hatchlings reach adulthood.M.oblongus has a lifespan of about 14 years. This snail is common in South-America;east of the Andes,Colombia to Argentina.It also appears in Trinidad and Tobago,and was introduced on the Caribbean Islands.
Varieties: Megalobulimus oblongus albus Bland and Binney,1872 Tobago Megalobulimus oblongus albolabiata E.A.Smith,1894 Ecuador Megalobulimus oblongus conicus Bequaert Brazil Megalobulimus oblongus formicacorsii Barattini & Alcalde-Ledin,1949 Megalobulimus oblongus haemastomus Scopoli,1786 Uruguay, Brazil Megalobulimus oblongus intertextus Pilsbry,1895 Brazil Megalobulimus oblongus lorentzianus Doring,1876 Argentina Megalobulimus oblongus musculus Bequaert,1948 Argentina Megalobulimus oblongus perelongatus Bequaert,1948 Colombia
Other species(for example):
Megalobulimus paranguensis Pilsbry & Ihering,1900 Brazil
Megalobulimus valenciennesi Pfeiffer,1842 Brazil
Megalobulimus popelairianus(the largest species) Nyst,1845 Peru
M.paranguensis M.valenciennesi
Photo's:Femorale