Selection of literature which may help in identification of marine molluscs

Some of the titles below are old and out of print. No one book covers all requirements and several sources should be consulted when trying to identify your specimens.

Mollusc Topics Only

• Bouchet, P., Danrigal, F., & Huyghens, C. (Eds.) 1979. Living Seashells: Molluscs of the English Channel and Atlantic Coasts. Blandford Press, Poole, Dorset. 144pp
• McMillan, N.F. 1968. British Shells. Frederick Warne & Co Ltd, London. 196pp. Species are figured by line drawing, monochrome or coloured plates.
• Graham, A. 1988. Molluscs: Prosobranch and pyramidellid gastropods. Synopses of the British fauna (NS) No. 2 (2nd edition). E.J. Brill, Leiden. Comprehensive and each species is figured with a line drawing.
• Jones, A.M. & Baxter, J.M. 1987. Mollusca: Caudofoveata, Solenogastres, Polyplacophora and Scaphopoda. Synopses of the British fauna (NS) No. 37. Academic Press, London. Best source available: each species is figured with a line drawing
• Picton, B.E. & Morrow C.C. 1994. A Field Guide to the NUDIBRANCHS of the British Isles. Immel Publishing. 143pp. Each species illustrated in colour, photos by the author.
• Poppe, G.T. & Goto, Y. 1991. European Seashells Volume I (Polyplacophora, Caudofoveata, Solenogastra, Gastropoda) Verlag Christa Hemmen. 221 pp. Species illustrated on coloured and few monochrome plates.
• Poppe, G.T. & Goto, Y. 1993. European Seashells Volume II (Scaphopoda, Bivalvia, Cephalopoda) Verlag Christa Hemmen. 352 pp. Species illustrated on coloured and few monochrome plates.
• Tebble, N. 1966. British Bivalve Seashells. British Museum (Natural History). 212pp. Contains line drawings, monochrome and colour plates.
• Thompson, T.E. 1976. Biology of Opisthobranch Molluscs Volume I. The Ray Society, London. 207pp.
• Thompson, T.E. & Brown, G.H. 1984. Biology of Opisthobranch Molluscs Volume II. The Ray Society, London. 229pp. This, and the above, authoritative work are lavishly illustrated with line drawings and colour plates.
• Thomson, T.E. 1988. Molluscs: benthic Opisthobranchs (Mollusca: Gastropoda) Synopses of the British fauna (NS) No. 8 (2nd edition). E.J. Brill, Leiden Each species is figured with a line drawing and there are coloured plates of selected species.

General Marine Biology

• Hayward, P.J. & Ryland, J.S. (Eds.) 1990. Marine fauna of the British Isles and North-West Europe. Volume 2. Molluscs to Chordates. Clarendon Press, Oxford.Selected species contained in Mollusc section. Accurate line drawings and useful supplement to other sources.

Other general seashore guides contain mollusc sections and may be helpful