Home/Species/ Whitelip Snail

Neohelix albolabris

(Say, 1816)

Whitelip Snail

G5Secure Found in 18 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G5SecureGlobal Rank

UnknownThreat Impact

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.112447

Element CodeIMGASA1020

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryInvertebrate Animal

Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

KingdomAnimalia

PhylumMollusca

ClassGastropoda

OrderStylommatophora

FamilyPolygyridae

GenusNeohelix

Synonyms

Polygyra albolabrisTriodopsis albolabris(Say, 1816)

Other Common Names

Whitelip (EN)

Concept Reference

Turgeon, D. D., J. F. Quinn, Jr., A. E. Bogan, E. V. Coan, F. G. Hochberg, W. G. Lyons, P. M. Mikkelsen, R. J. Neves, C. F. E. Roper, G. Rosenberg, B. Roth, A. Scheltema, F. G. Thompson, M. Vecchione, and J. D. Williams. 1998. Common and scientific names of aquatic invertebrates from the United States and Canada: Mollusks. 2nd Edition. American Fisheries Society Special Publication 26, Bethesda, Maryland. 526 pp.

Conservation Status

Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2

Review Date2025-09-16

Change Date2002-10-08

Edition Date2025-09-16

Edition AuthorsCordeiro, J. (2009); rev. T. Cornelisse (2025)

Threat ImpactUnknown

Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)

Number of Occurrences> 300

Rank Reasons

Despite some localized declines, this species has a large range and number of occurrences, and it has been documented across its range consistently in recent years.

Range Extent Comments

This species occurs in southeastern Canada from Ontario to New Brunswick and in the eastern United States from Wisconsin to Maine, south to South Carolina and west to Louisiana (Dourson and Feeman 2006; Hotopp and Pearce 2007; Nekola 2008; Schroeder 2008; NatureServe 2025; RARECAT 2025; InvertEBase 2025).

Occurrences Comments

This species is known from > 3300 occurrences using a 1 km separation distance and records from 1994-2025 (Dourson and Feeman 2006; Hotopp and Pearce 2007; Nekola 2008; Schroeder 2008; NatureServe 2025; RARECAT 2025; InvertEBase 2025).

Threat Impact Comments

Threats to this species are uknown.

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

This species is found in a wide range of upland mixed hardwood sites; at the base of limestone cliffs but also found on dry acidic ridgetops, in waste places and urban areas (Dourson 2013).

Terrestrial Habitats

Forest/WoodlandForest - HardwoodOld fieldCliffUrban/edificarian

Other Nations (2)

CanadaN3

Province	Rank	Native
Ontario	S2	Yes
Quebec	SNR	Yes
New Brunswick	S3	Yes

United StatesN5

Province	Rank	Native
Maryland	SNR	Yes
Delaware	SNR	Yes
Rhode Island	SNR	Yes
Michigan	SNR	Yes
West Virginia	S5	Yes
Virginia	S5	Yes
New Jersey	SNR	Yes
Ohio	SNR	Yes
Tennessee	S5	Yes
Vermont	SNR	Yes
Pennsylvania	S4	Yes
Connecticut	SNR	Yes
New Hampshire	SNR	Yes
Illinois	SNR	Yes
South Carolina	SNR	Yes
Wisconsin	S5	Yes
Maine	SNR	Yes
Indiana	SNR	Yes
North Carolina	S5	Yes
New York	SNR	Yes
District of Columbia	SNR	Yes
Massachusetts	SNR	Yes
Mississippi	SNR	Yes
Louisiana	SNR	Yes
Kentucky	S5	Yes

Threat Assessments

Threat	Scope	Severity	Timing
Unknown/undetermined	—	—	—

Roadless Areas (18)

Georgia (3)

Area	Forest	Acres
Helton Creek	Chattahoochee National Forest	2,348
Lance Creek	Chattahoochee National Forest	9,025
Pink Knob	Chattahoochee National Forest	12,127

Kentucky (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Wolfpen	Daniel Boone National Forest	2,835

New Hampshire (4)

Area	Forest	Acres
Carr Mountain	White Mountain National Forest	17,110
Mt. Wolf - Gordon Pond	White Mountain National Forest	11,846
Pemigewasset	White Mountain National Forest	32,255
Sandwich Range	White Mountain National Forest	16,797

North Carolina (3)

Area	Forest	Acres
Overflow Creek	Nantahala National Forest	3,379
Snowbird	Nantahala National Forest	8,489
Yellowhammer Branch (add.)	Nantahala National Forest	1,255

Pennsylvania (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Tracy Ridge	Allegheny National Forest	9,034

Tennessee (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
London Bridge Branch	Cherokee National Forest	3,387

Vermont (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bread Loaf	Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests	1,768

Virginia (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Elliott Knob	George Washington National Forest	9,380
Peters Mountain Addition B	Jefferson National Forest	2,909

West Virginia (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Little Mountain	Monongahela National Forest	8,172
Seneca Creek	Monongahela National Forest	22,287

References (17)

Burke, T.E. 2013. Land snails and slugs of the Pacific Northwest. Oregon State University Press, Corvallis. 352 pp
Dourson, D. and K. Feeman. 2006. A survey of terrestrial Mollusca in selected areas of the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science, 67(1): 9-18.
Dourson, D.C. 2010. Kentucky's land snails and their ecological communities. Goatslug Publications, Bakersville, NC. 298 pp.
Dourson, D.C. 2013. Land snails of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and southern Appalachians. Goatslug Publications, Bakersville, NC. 336 pp.
Dourson, D C. and West Virginia DNR. 2015. Land snails of West Virginia. Goatslug Publications, Bakersville, North Carolina. 412 pp.
Emberton, K.C. 1988. The genitalic, allozymic, and conchological evolution of the eastern North American Triodopsinae (Gastropoda: Pulmonata: Polygyridae). Malacologia, 28(1-2): 159-273.
Grimm, F.W. 1971. Annotated checklist of the land snails of Maryland and the District of Columbia. Sterkiana, 41: 51-57.
Hotopp, K. and T.A. Pearce. 2007. Land snails in New York: statewide distribution and talus site faunas. Final Report for contract #NYHER 041129 submitted to New York State Biodiversity Research Institute, New York State Museum, Albany, New York. 91 pp.
Hubricht, L. 1985. The distribution of the native land mollusks of the eastern United States. Fieldiana: Zoology 24:1-191.
InvertEBase. 2025. Online. Available: https://invertebase.org/portal/index.php.
NatureServe. 2025. NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia.
Nekola, J.C. 2008. Land snail ecology and biogeography of eastern Maine. Final report submitted to: Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife and the Aroostook Hills and Lowlands Inventory, January 27, 2008. 119 pp.
Nylander, O.O. 1936. Land and Fresh Water Shells of Aroostook County, Maine. Unpublished Manuscript NYW-0010 at the O. Nylander Museum, Caribou, Maine.
Orstan, A. 1999. Land snails of Black Hill Regional Park, Montgomery County, Maryland. The Maryland Naturalist 43(3-4):20-24.
<p>NatureServe's Rapid Analysis of Rarity and Endangerment Conservation Assessment Tool (RARECAT). 2025. Version: 2.1.1 (released April 04, 2025).</p>
Schroeder, L. 2008. The reluctant explorer. American Conchologist, 36(2): 32-34.
Turgeon, D. D., J. F. Quinn, Jr., A. E. Bogan, E. V. Coan, F. G. Hochberg, W. G. Lyons, P. M. Mikkelsen, R. J. Neves, C. F. E. Roper, G. Rosenberg, B. Roth, A. Scheltema, F. G. Thompson, M. Vecchione, and J. D. Williams. 1998. Common and scientific names of aquatic invertebrates from the United States and Canada: Mollusks. 2nd Edition. American Fisheries Society Special Publication 26, Bethesda, Maryland. 526 pp.

Neohelix albolabris

Habitat

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