Marsh Periwinkle Littorina irrorata (Say, 1822)    Synonyms: Littoraria irrorata.
Kingdom Animalia   >   Phylum Mollusca   >   Class Gastropoda   >   Order Neotaenioglossa   >   Family Littorinidae   >   Genus Littorina   

Status:

Identifying Marsh Periwinkles along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay and its larger tributaries is easy as there are no other similar species. Things get trickier in the coastal marshes of Worcester County. The non-native Common Periwinkle (Littorina littorea) was found in Ocean City in 1959 and is now established along the Maryland coast.

Relationships:

There is an important relationship between the Marsh Periwinkle and Smooth Cordgrass. According to the Chesapeake Bay Program, "These snails are known to practice 'fungiculture': by chewing holes in the cordgrass and spreading waste across the cuts, the marsh periwinkle can 'farm' fungus, their preferred food." Periwinkles are fungus farmers! That fungus farming is a well-developed low-level mutualism with the ascomycete Phaeosphaeria spartinicola.

Atlantic Blue Crab is a primary predator.

There are 156 records in the project database.

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Marsh Periwinkles in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (10/16/2013). Photo by Benjamin DeHaven. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (10/9/2016). Photo by Wayne Longbottom. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkles in Somerset Co., Maryland (5/6/2014). Photo by Lance Biechele. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in Dorchester Co., Maryland (4/2/2016). Photo by Nancy Martin. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (3/2/2021). (c) danlipnick, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by danlipnick via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

A Marsh Periwinkle in Calvert Co., Maryland (8/17/2014). Photo by Yvonne Dobson. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkles in Dorchester Co., Maryland (9/16/2017). Photo by Jerald Reb. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (10/3/2020). (c) Jacob Malcom, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA). Photo by Jacob Malcom via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in Talbot Co., Maryland (7/2/2021). (c) johnnyradicool, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by johnnyradicool via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkles in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (9/15/2018). Photo by Ben Springer. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in Somerset Co., Maryland (9/9/2022). (c) danieltayloroc, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by danieltayloroc via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (3/2/2021). (c) danlipnick, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by danlipnick via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in Talbot Co., Maryland (9/1/2018). (c) Wayne Longbottom, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by Wayne Longbottom. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (10/3/2020). (c) annagypsy, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA). Photo by annagypsy via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (5/26/2020). (c) jack, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by jack via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in Somerset Co., Maryland (7/26/2010). (c) Ashley Rodeheaver, all rights reserved. Photo by Ashley Rodeheaver. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (6/9/2021). (c) ecobc, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by ecobc via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in Talbot Co., Maryland (11/22/2016). Photo by Wayne Longbottom. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkles in Somerset Co., Maryland (8/7/2010). Photo by Bill Hubick. (MBP list)

A Marsh Periwinkle found in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (8/5/2013). Measured 21 mm. Photo by Robert Aguilar, SERC. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (6/9/2021). (c) ecobc, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by ecobc via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Marsh Periwinkle in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (6/9/2021). (c) ecobc, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by ecobc via iNaturalist. (MBP list)


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