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Journal of Experimental Biology 41,759-769 (1964)
Published by Company of Biologists 1964

The Evaporation of Water from Helix Aspersa : I. The Nature of the Evaporating Surface

JOHN MACHIN ¹

¹ Department of Zoology, Queen Mary College, University of London; Department of Zoology, University of Toronto, Toronto 5, Canada.

1. Observations of intact specimens of Helix aspersa together with experiments with isolated skin preparations are described.

2. Under normal atmospheric conditions increases in haemocoelic pressure, probably due to general muscular activity, are sufficient to maintain the superficial mucous coating of the skin.

3. Under conditions of rapid water loss more intense muscular undulations serve to spread mucus which collects in the grooves to more exposed areas of the skin.

4. The water content, the rate of water loss in dry air, the equilibrium in saturated air and depression of freezing point of isolated mucus samples have been measured.

5. The vapour pressure of mucus has been shown to be within 0.4% of that of distilled water under the same conditions.

6. The significance of the above findings is discussed in relation to evaporative water loss and water uptake of an intact snail.