Morphological characterization of the haemocytes of the ivory snail,Babylonia areolata(Neogastropoda: Buccinidae)

The nucleus diameter/cell diameter (N/C) ratio and morphological characteristics of the haemocytes of the snailBabylonia areolatawere studied using microscopy. Our results revealed two major types of haemocytes, namely granulocytes and hyalinocytes. In granulocytes, the cytoplasm was purplish red with Wright's staining, but it was blue in hyalinocytes. Hyalinocytes were smaller than granulocytes and had a higher N/C ratio. The granulocytes were sub-categorized into type I granulocytes and type II granulocytes based on the shape and the number of granules. Hyalinocytes were sub-categorized into large and small hyalinocytes based on the diameter and N/C ratio. Snails with a shell length from 2.7 to 3.3 cm showed no differences in the abundance of haemocytes.