Nutrition

Daedalochila auriformis gets its food by using its foot for locomotion to find nutrients and to consume food. Gastropods also have radula which are chitinous teeth, an organ used for scraping, tearing, and drilling into prey. These snails are land-dwelling species and can chew up leaves, bark, fruit and decomposing animals and also consumes organic matter or humus. Humus refers to any organic matter that has reached a point of stability, where it won't break down any further and might, if conditions do not change, remain as it is for years. By consuming dead organic matter, snails contribute to decomposition and the nutrient cycles and are an important aspect of the ecosystem. (Lab manual)

Daedalochila auriformis mouths have special glands that produces mucus so that the food can stick. Cilia then drives the mucus along with the food towards the stomach. The food particles are sorted by another group of cilia, which send the smaller food pieces to the prostyle so that eventually they are excreted, while the larger food particles are sent to the stomach's cecum to be digested. The anus is in the part of the mantle cavity that is then swept by the outgoing current created by the gills. (Wikimedia foundation,2012)

When food sources are very low in the summer or spring months, they may voluntarily put their body into a state of hibernation as well. This allows them to conserve energy and not need to forage for additional food. This is a mechanism that allows them to be able to survive in difficult conditions of drought. They will consume more food at the colder months ahead come. This is so they can store up fat reserves to live on while they hibernate during the winter. (Wikimedia foundation,2012)

The primary organs of excretion in gastropods are nephridia, which produce either ammonia or uric acid as a waste product. The nephridium also plays an important role in maintaining water balance in freshwater and terrestrial species. Additional organs of excretion, at least in some species, include pericardial glands in the body cavity, and digestive glands opening into the stomach. Two diverticular glands open into the stomach, enzymes in the stomach helps to break down the food.

Daedalochila auriformis have an open circulatory system – the blood is not confined to the heart and vessels but percolates under low pressure through irregular channels and sinuses in the tissues. These channels and sinuses make up the hemocoel, which is a major body cavity in these mollusks and is larger and far more important than the coelom. (Lab manual)