Plait (gastropod)
columella
, four strong and one weakA plait is an anatomical feature which is present the
pulmonate
land snails.
Plaits are folds on the
columella (also known as the pillar or axis) at the center of the shell. The columella (meaning little column) is the central structure around which the whorls
of a coiled gastropod shell are coiled.
The presence or absence of plaits, and the number of plaits, are characteristics used in the description of many gastropod molluscs, often enabling similar species to be separated and identified correctly.
References
- ISBN 0-00-216906-1