Do you know what a Threaded Vertigo is? Neither did Torrey and Karen before they monitored the Ruby Alton nature preserve on Salt Spring Island, alongside staff from the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) who own the property. Threaded Vertigo (Nearctula species) are incredibly tiny snails that like to snuggle up in the moss on the bark of large, old mossy maple trees. They are provincially blue-listed and a federal Species of Concern as they are particularly sensitive to disturbances. Did we mention they are really, really small? Check out our photos where you can see the tip of a mechanical pencil pointing to the snail, or the giant fingertips holding a shell. One of the ways to tell they are indeed Threaded Vertigo and not some other tiny snail (because there are actually a few!) is from their little teeth – denticles, to be precise. Threaded Vertigo have four little “teeth” that you can actually see in a photo, captured using our macro-lens. We were very lucky to spot them and have Ginny from NCC to thank for leading us in the right direction and Laura Matthias for the confirmation of ID. How many other species are we not even aware are there because they’re so tiny!? Amazing!
