Species- and locality-dependent variation in lipid content and fatty acid profiles of wild terrestrial helicid snails from southeastern Turkey

Wild terrestrial helicid snails are poorly studied invertebrate resources in southeastern Turkey. This study evaluated species- and locality-dependent variation in total lipid content and fatty acid profiles of six wild helicid snail groups: two populations of Helix lucorum Linnaeus, 1758, one population of Helix salomonica Nägele, 1899, one population of Levantina escheriana (Bourguignat, 1864) and two populations of Levantina mardinensis Kobelt, 1900. Lipid content was determined by acid hydrolysis, and fatty acids were analysed by GC-FID. Lipid content ranged from 0.47% in L. mardinensis from Güçlükonak to 2.19% in H. salomonica from Şırnak. Palmitic acid, stearic acid and oleic acid were the dominant fatty acids. Levantina escheriana showed the highest saturated fatty acid proportion and no detectable PUFA, whereas H. salomonica had the highest PUFA level. These results reveal marked biochemical differences among helicid snails from southeastern Turkey and provide baseline data for future food composition and ecological biochemistry assessments.