The pioneer snail fauna of a rehabilitated limestone quarry near Maastricht, The Netherlands

The snail fauna of a limestone quarry rehabilitated five years earlier was found to encompass eight species only. On a slope in the quarry facing north the fauna was quantitatively strongly dominated by Trichia hispida and Candidula intersecta, on a slope facing south-east in addition by Helicella itala. The paucity of snail species in the quarry markedly contrasted with the snail fauna of some old chalk grasslands in the vicinity of the quarry where 18 species of snails were collected. Based on these characteristics, and the fact that Candidula intersecta is rare in the Netherlands except for this quarry and some localities near the North Sea coast, the snail fauna of the limestone quarry is presented as an example of a pioneer snail fauna of dry, chalk-rich biotopes.