River Limpet (Ancylus fluviatilis)

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IDENTIFICATION: A small limpet barely 8 mm long. The apex is inclined to the back of the animal and so it tends to face up stream for maximum streamlining. Common on the bottom of all stony and rocky streams and rivers. It can also be found in still water where there is a hard substrate. Found throughout Europe and the UK.

ECOLOGY: This tiny limpet feeds by scraping algae off the stones and rocks at the bottom of the water body. For this it uses a radula, a strap-like toungue with rows of teeth.

Classification:
Kingdom	Animal
Phylum	Mollusca
Class	Gastropoda
Order	Pulmonate snail

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