Domain: Eukaryote 

             Kingdom: Animalia

                 Phylum: Mollusca

                      Class: Gastropoda

                           Order: Stylommatophora

                                Family: Polygyridae

                                     Genus: Praticolella

                                          Species: Praticolella candida

Eukaryote

Organisms in the Eukaryote Domain contain membrane bound organelles and a membrane bound nucleus (Zipcode Zoo 2013).

Animalia

Among the Kingdom Animalia, the organisms are multicellular and they have a fixed body plan. To have a fixed body plan means that the way the organism develops is set in stone by its DNA. The body plan for P. candida matches the specific Phyla Mollusca (Hickman et. al. 2011).

Mollusa

Defining characteristic of the Phylum Mollusca include a mantle, radula, and a calcium carbonate shell. A Mollusks life cycle can be both direct or indirect depending on the habitat it lives in. P. candida have an indirect life cycle (Hickman et. al. 2011).

Gastropoda

What separates the Gastropods from other Mollusca is something called torsion. Torsion is a twist of the internal body by 180 degrees. The majority of Gastropods are herbivores, however there are some scavengers and carnivores. P. candida are herbivores (Hickman et. al. 2011).

Stylommatophora

This Order encompasses terrestrial snails and slugs. They have developed a respiratory system fit for air (Zipcode Zoo 2013).

Polygyridae

Polygyridae takes it a step further and narrows it down to just a specific family of terrestrial snails (Perez 2011).

Praticolella

Snails can often be distinguished by their shell. Praticolella's unique shell consists of distinctly colored globose shells that lack apertural teeth (Plsbry 1940).

Praticollela candida

More commonly known as the White Shrubsnail, P. candida is only found in a small number of places. It inhabits a small portion of northeaster Mexico and a few places in the United States scattered along the southern coast between Texas and North Carolina (Plsbry 1940).

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