This snail lives in trees, and inhabits rain forest areas up to 112 m (367 ft) above sea level.

The green color is however not within the solid, calcium carbonate part of the shell but instead it is a very thin protein layer known as the periostracum.

Overharvesting of the species for commercial purposes led to a decline in the population of this snail.

[1] The snail and its shell are protected under CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora)[4] and the species is listed in the IUCN Red List as near threatened as of 2015.

[1] Papustyla pulcherrima is the only foreign gastropod species that is listed as Federally Endangered in the United States since 2 June 1970.