European physa
Scientific name: Physella acuta (Draparnaud, 1805)
Overview
Physella acuta, also known as the European physa, tadpole snail, sewage snail, bladder snail, or acute bladder snail, is a species of small, air-breathing freshwater snail of the family Physidae. It originates from North America and was first described in 1805 by Jacques Philippe Raymond Draparnaud based on a specimen found in France. Like other physids, P. acuta presents a sinistral (left-coiling) shell as well as a unique set of muscles called the physid musculature that allows it to rapidly twist the shell as a defence mechanism.
From the Wikipedia article “Physella acuta”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Least concern on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022.2.
Common names
Also known in English as acute bladder snail, pointed bladder snail, tadpole snail.
Names in other languages (4)
- Arabic
- مثانة حادة
- Chinese
- 囊螺, 尖膀胱螺
- German
- Spitze Blasenschnecke
- Japanese
- サカマキガイ
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: MolluscaBase.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, names in other languages. Q1694040, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Physella acuta”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — N yotarou, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026