The Mediterranean vampire snail that drinks fish blood and the shipworm that learned to eat through stone are among finalists for this year’s International Mollusc of the Year contest.
Three snails and two bivalves are competing for one title.
It is the sixth time that the Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung and Unitas Malacologica – the International Society for Mollusc Research – has hosted the public online vote.
It says the aim is “to raise public awareness of the impressive diversity of this fascinating group of animals and to promote their protection”.
The winning species will also receive a special award: its genome will be fully sequenced for the first time.
“By choosing the ‘Mollusc of the Year 2026,’ we want to highlight the enormous diversity of molluscs, the second-most species-rich animal group in the world,” Dr Julia Sigwart, head of the Marine Zoology Department at the Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum, Frankfurt, says.
“Molluscs occupy almost every habitat on our planet – from tiny snails barely visible to the naked eye to giant squid, which are among the largest invertebrates on Earth,”she says.
“This impressive range of shapes, lifestyles, and adaptations is also evident in the five exceptional nominees for this year’s competition.”
This year’s candidates for the title are the giant horse snail Triplofusus giganteus, the rock-eating shipworm Lithoredo abatanica, the vampire snail Cumia intertexta, the white slug Filicaulis seychellensis native to the Seychelles, and the “winged” moon cockle Ephippodonta lunata.
An international jury of researchers from Senckenberg and the Unitas Malacologica selected them from among numerous nominations submitted by the global mollusc community.
From April 13th to 26th, mollusc fans can learn more about the nominated species on the website and cast their vote for their personal favourite.
The winner will be announced on April 30th.
