NATURAL HISTORY

ICHETUCKNEE SILTSNAIL} FLORIDOBIA MICA

FAMILY: Hydrobiidae

DESCRIPTION: The Ichetucknee siltsnail is a freshwater snail that grows to be approximately 2-3 millimeters in size. It is brown with a translucent, iridescent shell and feeds on algae within the substrate of its home spring.

HABITAT: This snail lives exclusively in Coffee Spring, an outflow of the Ichetucknee River, among submerged vegetation.

RANGE: The snail's range is limited to about 10 square yards of a single spring in the Ichetucknee River in Suwanee County, Florida.

MIGRATION: The Ichetucknee siltsnail does not migrate.

BREEDING AND LIFE CYCLE: Little is known about this species' breeding behavior or life cycle.

FEEDING: The Ichetucknee siltsnail eats algae off of the substrate of Coffee Spring, helping maintain water quality like other hydrobiids.

THREATS: This snail is threatened by ongoing degradation of water quality in its habitat. Recreational activities in the springs near where it lives pose an immediate danger.

POPULATION TREND: There is currently no data documenting the population size of this species, but it must be extremely small, considering its limited known range.

Ichetucknee siltsnail photo courtesy Erin Gawera, USFWS