Nutrition
We have seen how Lucilla singleyana is an important food source for other animals on the Interactions page. Now, let's look at how the Smooth Coil gains its nutrients.
Very little is known about how this particular species feeds. However, we can look at the feeding behaviors of other members of the Genus Lucilla to develop an idea about the eating habits of Lucilla singleyana.
Land snails use a radula to feed. The radula is a rasping, rough feeding projection that is used to forcibly scrape debris off substrates. While some carnivorous snails use the radula to spear other animals, it is apparent that the Smooth Coil is a herbivorous snail that uses its radula to obtain tree sap, fungis, lichens, and other small particles of vegetation. There is also a theory that snails in this genus use their radulas to harvest calcium deposits from the shells of deceased snails.
Below is a diagram of a snail's radula.
