Pseudotrichia rubiginosa, sometimes known as the "German hairy snail", is a species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 of air-breathing land snail

Snail

Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...

, a terrestrial

Terrestrial animal

Terrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land , as compared with aquatic animals, which live predominantly or entirely in the water , or amphibians, which rely on a combination of aquatic and terrestrial habitats...

 pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Hygromiidae

Hygromiidae

Hygromiidae is a taxonomic family of small to medium-sized air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Helicoidea.-Anatomy:...

, the hairy snails and their allies.

Life cycle

This species of snail makes and uses love darts during mating.

The size of the egg is 1.6 mm.

Distribution

The snail occurs in many areas throughout Europe:

• Great Britain - In England, it is found along the River Thames
  River Thames
  The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
  
   in London
  London
  London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
  
   where it has a habitat at Isleworth Ait
  Isleworth Ait
  Isleworth Ait, is a teardrop shaped island in the River Thames in England. It is on the Tideway near Isleworth in the London Borough of Hounslow, and is one of the longest aits. It lies offshore from Heron's Place, and is opposite the "London Apprentice" public house.Isleworth Ait is covered by...
  
   and along the River Lea, in east London, and Bow Back Rivers
  Bow Back Rivers
  The Bow Back Rivers are part of the River Lea in the London Borough of Newham, east London, England, and form a complex system of waterways. The River Lea was originally tidal as far as Hackney Wick; man-made changes to the river had changed this dramatically in the 9th century, and in 1110 a...
  
  . It is also found in Oxfordshire
  Oxfordshire
  Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
  
   and by the River Medway
  River Medway
  The River Medway, which is almost entirely in Kent, England, flows for from just inside the West Sussex border to the point where it enters the Thames Estuary....
  
   in Kent
  Kent
  Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
  
  . Pseudotrichia rubiginosa is thought to have come to Britain during the last Ice Age
  Ice age
  An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
  
  , when Britain was still connected to mainland Europe.
• Czech Republic
• Slovakia
• Poland
• Netherlands