
They're calling it a micro mollusk, and it's a lot smaller than the normal size snail pictured above.
Scientists have stumbled upon a new species of snail in Borneo that has shattered the world record for world’s tiniest snail.
This mollusk broke a record that was only set a month ago in China. It features a translucent white shell and has a height of just 0.027 inches, or 0.7 millimeters — about a tenth of a millimeter shorter than the previous record holder, according to a Live Science report.
The Chinese snail Angustopila dominikae has already been demoted to the second-smallest snail after being discovered last month.
The new snail was named Acmella nana. Nana is from the Latin “nanus,” which means dwarf. Scientists had to use a microscope in order to see it.
Borneo was a great place to look for creatures like this, particularly the tiny jungle-covered island’s limestone hills, as the shell of the snail is made from calcium carbonate, which is found in limestone.
The scientists collected soil from underneath the limestone cliffs and sifted through it carefully to see what they could find, examining samples under a microscope. Sometimes, they are able to get tens of thousands of shells from just a few clumps of soil.
Scientists think Acmella nana probably has a diet of bacteria and fungi that grows on the limestone surfaces, much like a similar snail species, Acmella polita.
Borneo is an incredibly diverse island that includes parts of the countries of Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia. An estimate 500 species of snails alone are believed to live there.
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