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Photo: G. Bradley
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UK
Safari Tip:
Find out more about land snails of Britain with this neat little book - click
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Latin name: Helix aspersa
Size: Approximately 8cms long.
Distribution: Garden snails are common throughout Britain.
Months seen: Most active between March and October.
Habitat: Hedgerows, gardens and fields. They prefer to feed on areas with chalky soil as this helps shell growth.
Food: Snails feed on vegetable matter, which is why they are loathed by many gardeners.
Special features: When they are moving you get to see their head which has two long tentacles, each with an eye at the tip.
During the winter they hibernate, often in large groups, under stones and in crevices of trees. They seal themselves into their shells with a layer of mucus which hardens to form a cap.
Snails have an unusual sex life. Each snail has both male and female sex organs. When two snails mate, they inject each other with sperm, and both snails part to lay up to forty eggs each, often in a shallow hole in the ground. Each egg hatches into a tiny snail after about four weeks. The shell of the snail grows as the snail's body grows.
Book of Land Snails
UK Safari Creepy-Crawlies Section
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