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Dieren en planten

Molluscs   Mussel   Oysters   Pacific oyster   Marine snails   American slipper limpet   Freshwater snails   Bivalves   Nudibranch   Large sea snails   

American slipper limpet

size:

up to 4.5 centimeters

color:

yellowish brown to pink

age:

5 to 10 years

food:

plankton

enemies:

crabs, starfish

reproduction:

sexual, they change from male to female

  • Dut: Muiltje
  • Lat: Crepidula fornicata
  • Eng: American slipper limpet
  • Ger: Pantoffelschnecke
  • Dan: Tøffelsnegl
print print
Slipper limpet, foto fitis, sytske dijksen

American slipper limpet

American slipper limpets look like slippers, therefore their name. They live off of plankton which they filter out of the seawater. They are often found piled one on top of another (up to twelve specimen), a real slipper limpet skyscraper. The snails at the top of the tower are always male, the middle ones are in the process of changing sex and the lowest ones are female. American slipper limpets begin their life as males and change in time into females.

  • Distribution and habitat
    American slipper limpet, underside, foto fitis, sytske dijksen

    In the Netherlands, this snail is particularly common on the dikes in Zeeland, although they also regularly wash ashore elsewhere. You often find American slipper limpets on oysters and mussels or close by.