Common European Ambersnail

Also known as Amber Snail, Large Amber Snail

Common European ambersnails thrive on emergent vegetation in wetlands, climbing reeds, sedges, and nettles above damp soil or standing water. Their delicate, semi-translucent shells resemble warm amber and have an unusually large aperture into which the soft body cannot entirely retract. They are famous across Europe as the primary intermediate host for the parasitic flatworm Leucochloridium paradoxum, which transforms their eye stalks into brightly pulsating, striped broodsacs that entice foraging birds.