A snail has a brain. Amazing facts about snails. Protective functions of the sink

One of the most common pets in Lately are snails. But having acquired such an unusual pet, owners begin to become interested in the structure of the mollusk’s body. Snail eyes are the topic of our article today, in which we will talk about how many eyes a snail has and how these bizarre creatures see the world.

Organ of vision

Does a snail have eyes? Undoubtedly, yes, this animal has two eyes located on the top of the horns. The horns are two tentacles located on the head of the mollusk. In addition to the upper tentacles, there are also two lower ones, but much smaller. Little horns are responsible for detecting smells and learning about the world around them.

The snail's eyes, photos of which are presented below, contain a lens, the bottom of which is connected to the optic nerve. The optic vesicle has a transparent anterior wall, while the posterior and lateral walls are pigmented. This primarily affects the viewing angle, which is undoubtedly smaller for snails than for humans.

The eyes of the Achatina snail, for example, allow you to see objects at a distance of one to two centimeters, and determine the illumination of objects and environment at a greater distance.

It should be noted that snails are able to detect light not only with the help of their eyes, but also with the help of their entire body. This is possible due to the presence of unique cells in the body of the mollusk. It should also be understood that because of this feature of snails, they have an extremely negative attitude towards bright lighting. For this reason, snails are most active during dusk and at night.

Be sure to take this structural feature of the mollusk into account and do not leave your pets in bright sunlight.

The snail's eyes are also very sensitive to heating lamps, which owners very often install in aquariums to increase the air temperature. You should be extremely careful and be sure to provide a shadow area into which the lamp rays do not fall. If the light is directed at the entire aquarium, most likely, your pets will spend most of their time buried deep in the ground.

Snails are seemingly ordinary creatures that cause a feeling of disgust and disgust in many. But in fact, they can be both amazingly beautiful and very dangerous, and some facts about their lives can amaze you.

A snail is any mollusk of the gastropod class that has an external shell.
Gastropods with a rudimentary shell or those that have completely lost it are called slugs. Since most gastropods have a shell, all representatives of the class are often called snails, but we will talk about those with a “house”.

The snail has about 25 thousand teeth. They are located in the form of a “grater”, with the help of which they grind food.

Sometimes snails become a real disaster for people. For example, grape snails can destroy a large vineyard in a few days. So in the Hawaiian Islands, more than three kilograms of snails were once removed from one square meter of garden.

The snail's body is also capable of regeneration and, over time, restores lost parts
The calcareous shell is produced by the top layer of the snail's body - the mantle - and grows along with the snail. The shell, although fragile, is durable, can withstand a load of up to 13.5 kg, and if damaged, the snail quickly “seals” the cracks.

Snails mainly move by slowly sliding on the sole of the foot, while movement is carried out by waves of contraction running from back to front along the sole, the sliding is aided by secreted mucus, which creates a kind of “cushion”. Thanks to the mucus, the snail can crawl along the blade without harm to its body.

Snails live on average about 15 years.
Under unfavorable conditions, snails can hibernate for even six months, closing the entrance with mucus, which gradually hardens, forming a dense “door.” Snails can tolerate heat and extreme cold - garden representatives survive at minus 120 degrees Celsius.

Most snails are hermaphrodites; heterosexual creatures are very rare.
Snails have no hearing at all. They are unable to make sounds. Snails interact with each other using touch. The horns of these creatures are a nose, but turned inside out. All the receptors that we have inside are extended into these horns. In addition to all this, these mollusks have organs of chemical sense and balance.

Snails have incredible strength: they can carry 10 times more things than their own weight.
The color of a snail's shell directly depends on the color of the soil and the composition of the food.

According to research, snails cannot see. They only distinguish between light and darkness

Recently, snails have been actively used as donors of nerve tissue for the treatment of brain diseases. There are already results of the first successful experiments in transplanting snail nerve ganglia into rats
The grape snail can reach a maximum speed of up to 7 cm/min

The giant land snail Achatina fulica can reach up to 20 cm in length. Despite its enormous size, average speed such a snail is less than the speed of an ordinary grape snail.
The largest snail found was of the species Syrinx aruanus. She weighed 16 kg and her house was 70 cm long. These are aquatic snails, and in water, as is known, weight decreases.

But this is not the limit
The giant Australian whelk lives in the coastal and subtidal zones of Australia - its weight reaches 18 kilograms, and the size of its shell can be almost 1 meter in length. The shells of these mollusks are so large that they are often used as a vessel for carrying water.

Snail meat contains more protein than a chicken egg.
Even the ancient Greeks decorated their festive tables snails fed with herbs (especially thyme, which gives snail meat a special taste) in special gardens. They were also fed with flour and wine for the imperial table in order to expand the variety of meat dishes. Grape snail meat is also a fairly strong aphrodisiac.

Aquarium snails
In addition to decorative purposes, aquarists keep snails to improve the cleanliness of the aquarium as a whole. In fact, snails are natural orderlies who clean aquatic plants from fouling with various algae, process dead pieces of leaves of aquatic plants, and the remains of aquarium fish’s meals.

Aquarium killers
Killer snails do not even shun manifestations of cannibalism, eating their relatives. These snails are often used by aquarists who want to get rid of excessively multiplied ordinary snails - the snail waits for its victim, sometimes exceeding it in size, pounces, wraps itself around the victim and sucks it out, leaving only an empty shell.

Sea snails - their diversity is amazing - there are about 55,000 species of sea snails.

In fact, there are twice as many marine mollusks as there are land and freshwater mollusks combined. Sea snails include whelks, limpets, cones, litorinas, cyprians and many others.

Marine pest - rapana
Several decades ago, rapana lived only in the Sea of ​​Japan, but in the 50s, someone brought mollusks to the Black Sea, where they began to breed and soon filled most reservoirs. Rapana eat oysters and mussels, which are natural water filters. Unfortunately, the Black Sea does not contain (due to the salinity of the water) starfish, which are the natural enemies of rapana. Today, rapana is mined for meat, it is nutritious and tasty.

Dangerous snails
The cone geographus (Conus geographus) is a predatory snail, and one of the most poisonous in the world.
The venom of the geographical cone is dangerous and for a person its harpoon, which injects poison into the victim, can lead to death. However, the poison of this mollusk also has useful property, because it contains a substance that has a strong analgesic effect.

Otway black snails
Black Otway snails live in the forests of Australia and New Zealand and feed on other snails, worms and insects, which they trap with their slime-covered body, piercing and tearing them apart at the last moment with their sharp sting. In addition, these snails can live up to 20 years, which is much longer than the lifespan of most land snails.

The giant snail Achatina is the largest land mollusk on Earth August 5th, 2013

Giant snail Achatina (lat.Achatina fulica) is the largest land mollusk. Since the end of the 18th century, these huge (up to 30 cm) snails have spread widely across the tropical and subtropical latitudes of the planet.

On the African continent, as well as in the forests of Southeast Asia, where these African snails now live, after they were brought here, they live on tree trunks. Young people are harmless and very useful Achatina- They eat rotting parts of plants. Adults Achatina harm most cultivated plants, especially bananas and citrus fruits.

Now Achatina brought to many countries. They are grown in terrariums and also in gardens. They are also eaten in some countries. Snails were introduced to France in 1977 Achatina for an amount within 3 million dollars. Breeding Achatina successfully promotes its hyperfertility and rapid growth.

Let's find out more about them...

Achatina is a whole group of terrestrial gastropods, representatives of the genus Achatina. Only a specialist can distinguish between representatives of this genus, so amateurs usually do not give of great importance what kind of species they contain, especially since the biology of all these species does not differ much. The largest terrestrial mollusks belong to this genus.

The shell of Achatina can reach a length of up to 25 cm, and the body - up to 30 cm. The size of the snail directly depends on the conditions of detention - in a favorable tropical climate, “monsters” grow weighing up to 300-400 grams. The size of a snail depends on whether it participates in reproduction, therefore, if you want to raise a giant, you will need to take care not only of maintaining the proper climate and purchasing a large terrarium, but also of the fact that you will need to raise it alone - actively breeding snails do not grow up to large sizes.

Usually, where Achatina appears, people begin to experience difficulties with it, or rather, with its extermination. All this is because the snail is truly all-consuming and multiplies extremely quickly. By the way, in the USA (in all seriousness) the snail is considered a national disaster, because... at one point, these snails multiplied so much in one of the states that they ate almost everything that came their way - bark on trees, crops, and even plaster on houses (snails need calcium to build shells). People who breed Achatina in the USA face a prison sentence (probably there are no such people there;).

However, in Russia Achatina does not survive in natural conditions, and keeping it at home is not dangerous. Therefore, recently there has been an increase in the “livestock” of domestic Achatina. In fact, these snails are something of an ideal pet.

To keep Achatina, a small terrarium (aquarium) with a small amount of soil is enough. The terrarium needs to be maintained in a warm, humid climate (25-28 degrees). However, it is not necessary to heat the terrarium: snails tolerate room temperature well, but their agility decreases slightly and they sleep more often. Periodically, you need to moisten the walls of the terrarium and the soil using a regular flower sprayer: the snails drink water from the walls of the terrarium, licking the drops.

Achatina eat almost everything that is given. Vegetables, fruits, porridge, mushrooms, meat, fish, poultry. They do not disdain various bits and scraps. It is almost impossible to overfeed Achatina - the snail itself stops eating when it is full. It is enough to feed a young Achatina once a day, and an adult one even less often: a couple of times a week. Also, in addition to feed, young animals need to be given calcium: ground calcium is best suited for this. eggshell. After Achatina has had enough, it is necessary to remove the remaining food so that it does not begin to rot. What’s interesting is that the snail will not eat food that is not suitable for it or that can poison it.

Achatina, as a rule, is extremely fond of cucumbers. Also, they rarely refuse carrots and cabbage. They eat bananas and apples, but not all varieties (which ones specifically, you’ll have to experiment). Some Achatina (specifically, ours for sure) eat bell peppers, and in such a way that “the ears crack.” It is advisable to feed Achatina everything that it eats, periodically alternate foods and not give preference to any type of food.

Achatina does not create any odors. Even her excrement does not smell. She can see objects from a short distance because... she has eyes on retractable “horns”. Achatina do not like bright light (especially direct sunlight), so you should not overdo it with lighting the terrarium. But Achatina’s hearing is not very good: it simply doesn’t exist. However, this can hardly be called a particular drawback. But Achatina’s sense of smell is fine: they smell food quite far away - at a distance of up to two meters!

Achatina are nocturnal animals and during the day they usually sleep, buried in the ground. In the evening they wake up and begin to look for food, actively climbing around the terrarium. If the conditions in the terrarium are unfavorable (not humid enough, there is no food), Achatina can “seal” into the shell, creating a lid, and sleep for a very long time. Thus, Achatina can be left for a couple of months without any care (two months is considered a completely normal period). Before the long-term absence of the owners, it is recommended to “manually” create conditions for “sealing” the Achatina - change the soil in the terrarium to completely dry and not give any food - then the snails will fall asleep pretty soon. To awaken Achatina, simply place it under a stream of warm water. In just a few minutes the snail will squeeze out the lid and emerge into the world. Very hungry!

When breeding Achatina, apparently, there are no problems at all. The man who gave my friend the snail admitted that he himself had become a “breeder” without knowing it. They say there were two snails in the aquarium. I looked in one day and there were already ten sitting there. Moreover, ten is said quite modestly, because... one Achatina is capable of laying 100-200 eggs, of which approximately half survive. At the same time, after 2-3 weeks the juveniles appear, and after 1.5 months the juveniles become adults. From this it is clear that snails are capable of reproducing at a simply gigantic rate and it becomes clear why they are a disaster in countries with a climate favorable for their livelihoods.

It’s funny that if you feed Achatina with brightly colored vegetables (for example, varieties of sweet peppers), its shell as it grows takes on the shade of that very vegetable. Thus, you can regulate the appearance of the shell if you feed Achatina first with one type of pepper (for example, red) and then with another (green). There is information that not all Achatina eat pepper, but ours definitely does - that’s why I’m telling you this.

Because Achatina is nocturnal, she is not averse to rustling around the terrarium at night - then you can hear how her body rubs against the walls or how she clinks her shell on the glass (if the terrarium is glass). When frightened, the snail sharply retracts into its shell and then a squeak can be heard. These are, perhaps, all the sounds that Achatina can make.

In captivity, Achatina live 7-10 years - i.e., and in this regard they are not inferior to other domestic animals. In addition, Achatina does not bite.

Thus, Achatina are simply wonderful pets that know their owners, are extremely unpretentious, do not bark or meow throughout the house, have no odor and do not cause allergies.

Achatina have been shown to have long-term memory: they can remember the location of food sources and return to them. Young individuals are more mobile and cover long distances during the day, and are also capable of long-distance migrations. Usually they do not return to the same place to relax. Old snails, on the contrary, have a place where they prefer to rest and from where they crawl out in search of food, without moving more than 5 meters away. When the snails are transferred to the resting place of another Achatina (within 30 meters), they still return to theirs.

Children by nature are very inquisitive, ask a lot of questions, want to know more about the world around them and nature. This is good. Parents can introduce their children to the world around them in an accessible way.

Today I invite you to spend with us for the child elementary biology lesson and tell about the snail.

Recently, my granddaughter and I have often watched snails. It often rained here, and after the rain the snails crawl out and you can watch them. Just the other day, Yulia and I were walking and a large snail crawled onto the road right in front of us. She was not at all timid, because she was not afraid of us, but on the contrary, she posed very funny. Julia took a good look at her.

Children are interested in knowing everything: what snails eat, how they live, how they hibernate, why they need horns, how snails are born: with a shell or not. Let's introduce children to these inhabitants in an accessible playful way. Children need such biology lessons. They learn to be observant, learn about the world around them, learn to treat nature and animals with care.

We once had a lesson with my granddaughter, sculpting a snail out of plasticine and guessing riddles about the snail. Yulechka was smaller then. You can see our plasticine snail.

We tell the children about the snail.

1. The amazing world of snails
2. Game "Where is whose house?" Sink - house
3. How does a snail move?
4. What does a snail eat - game "Treat for the snail"
5. Where does the snail live and where does it spend the winter?
6. Why does a snail need horns?
7. Does the little snail have enemies?
8. Interesting facts about snails

The amazing world of snails

Yulia and I took a photo of our snail, which posed for us. It was very funny to watch her.

Snails are also called mollusks. There are a lot of them, different types. This is an ancient group of animals. They differ from each other in structure, size, shell, habitat and type of nutrition.

There are aquatic snails that live in ponds, and there are terrestrial snails that live in damp places.

Game "Where is whose house?"

Let's solve the riddle:

My motto is simple -

“I carry everything I own with me!”

Two antennas above the gate,

Carrying its house….(snail)

Let's play a game. The picture shows different animals and their houses. It is necessary to resettle the animals in their houses.

Game for children

How is a snail different from other animals? She carries her house on herself.

The shell is a reliable home for the soft body of the snail. She closes the entrance to the shell with mucus and can survive both cold and extreme heat in her house.

The shell is part of the snail's body. She cannot change her home to another, because she is born with it and grows with the shell. The shell is twisted in a spiral. You can touch it. How does it feel to the touch: soft or hard, warm or cold, smooth or rough?

In humans, the body is supported by the skeleton: bones and spine. But the snail does not have such reliable support; they are invertebrate animals. And the shell is a support for snails. If we pick up a snail, it hides in its shell, it’s safer for it. She is hiding from uninvited guests. You should not step on snails. You can crush it, the shell is fragile. But these little creatures also want to live.

How does a snail move?

Snails are mollusks. Among the mollusks there are gastropods. These are pond snails, vine snails, and slugs. We see them most often. Slugs don't have a shell.

In the body of these snails, one can distinguish a torso, head and leg. But there are no sharp boundaries between them. The snail's body follows the shape of its shell and is adjacent to its inner surface.

How many legs do children have? Two. What about dogs and cats? Four. The snail has only one leg. The snail moves with the help of its leg. The snail moves in different ways. Sections of the leg alternately bend and straighten. When a snail crawls, it leaves a trail. This is the mucus she secretes to keep herself from drying out. The mucus protects the snail from damage.

Let's play a game" Treat for the snail."

Look at the picture and choose what the snail is eating.

Game for children

Does she like ice cream? Or sausage? No. Then what does she like, what does she eat?

The snail does not eat the pies, potatoes and lard that children promise it when they ask it to stick out its horns. The snail is a herbivore. What does it mean? It feeds on grass and plants. They love fresh lettuce leaves. What does a snail eat, how does it chew food? After all, she doesn’t have teeth like ours. She has small teeth that look like a grater. So she grinds plant food with them.

How does a snail live and where does it winter?

The snail loves moisture very much. She is moisture-loving. In dry, hot weather, the snail hides under stones, in the shade of plants, and in damp moss. Located in its own shell house. The snail becomes active only at night or after rain. Then we can get a good look at them; they crawl out.

In the fall, snails burrow into the soil for the winter and leave their shelter in the spring.

Why does a snail need horns?

“Ravlik-Pavlik, stick out your horns...” - kids often ask when they find a snail. A snail does not have horns like a cow, but has two pairs of horns. These are the sense organs. One pair has eyes, like stalks. When you and I look around, we turn our heads and turn our necks. But a snail doesn’t have a neck. She rotates the stem-horns on which the eyes are located.

Another pair of horns are like antennae, for the perception of taste and smell. So a snail is nowhere without “horns”! These horns are very sensitive and there is no need to touch them with your hands.

Does the little snail have enemies?

The snail has many enemies: hedgehogs, mice, birds, lizards, toads, and other snails.

In some European countries, snails are specially fed and eaten.

How are snails born?

Snails lay eggs in the hole, about 100 in total, once a month. then they are covered with dirt and mucus. The eggs hatch into small snails. Which ones are they born: with a shell or not? 7 Snails are born transparent along with a shell. After a while, when they grow up, they crawl out and begin to look for food for themselves.

I suggest you watch a video of how snails lay eggs and are born.

Yulia and I watched small snails. There were a lot of them on the grass. In hot weather, they hid in the shell and did not crawl out of it. But in the evening you could already see them crawling on the grass.

• The maximum speed of snails is approximately 7 cm per minute;
• In Europe, snails are eaten. They contain more protein than chicken eggs;
• The giant land snail Achatina fulica can reach 20 cm in length. but its speed is less than that of a grape snail;
• The snail's tongue is equipped with a radula - a kind of grater covered with numerous chitinous teeth. Using the radula, the snail scrapes off food, which it then swallows. The radula is constantly renewed, worn out “teeth” are replaced with new ones.

On average 25,000-30,000 teeth;

• Almost all snails have a shell that twists clockwise when viewed from the pointed end.

Now we have learned a lot about snails. their structure, why they need a shell, where the snail’s eyes are.

I invite the children to look at the picture and say what the artist did wrong.

Children can try drawing a snail with pencils.

Julia also made a snail from plasticine. This is the picture she got.

These are the classes Yulia and I had about snails. Soon I will make a selection of poems for children about a snail.

This elementary biology lesson can be taught for children and they can learn a lot of interesting things about the small snail.

We learned about the snail's lifestyle, what it eats, where it lives, and how it is born. We also drew a snail and played games. Now my granddaughter knows a lot about the snail and its way of life.

Did you like our lesson? Then write your comments and share the information with your friends on social media. networks. I will be very grateful to you for this.

The class Gastropods belongs to the phylum Mollusca and is the most numerous in this phylum. There are about 100 thousand species of gastropods. They live in the seas, fresh water bodies, and on land. Typical representatives are the large pond snail and the horn reel.

They feed on plants and organic debris. On the underside of their body they have a grater with which they scrape off the tissues of the stem and leaves.

They have a developed sole along the entire ventral side of their body, which contracts in waves and thus allows the snail to crawl.

Most gastropods have a curled shell consisting of a horn-like substance and lime. This shell serves as protection for the mollusk. In slugs, the shell is reduced and consists of remains under the skin.

The body of a gastropod can be distinguished by a head, torso and leg. The head has tentacles and eyes.

There is a fold of skin on the body of the mollusk - the mantle. The mantle secretes a special substance that causes the shell to increase in size. This is necessary as the mollusk grows.

Most aquatic gastropods have one or two gills in the mantle cavity. In coil snails, pond snails, and grape snails, the mantle cavity acts as a lung. The mantle cavity is filled with air, oxygen from which enters the blood vessels through the wall of the mantle. Carbon dioxide leaves the blood vessels.

Gastropods have a grater, which is a tongue-like outgrowth of the pharynx. The grater is covered with horny teeth. They fall into the throat salivary glands. There is a liver, the ducts of which open into the stomach. The intestine has a long middle and posterior sections.

The structure of the pulmonary cochlea: 1 - shells; 2 - digestive gland; 3 - light; 4 - anus; 5 - pneumostomy; 6 - eye; 7 - tentacle; 8 - brain; 9 - radula; 10 - mouth; 11 - goiter; 12 - salivary gland; 13 - gonopore; 14 - penis; 15 - vagina; 16 - mucous gland; 17 - oviduct; 18 - bag of love arrows; 19 - leg; 20 - stomach; 21 - kidney; 22 - mantle; 23 - heart; 24 - vas deferens

The circulatory system is not closed. There is a heart consisting of an atrium and a ventricle. From the heart, blood flows through the blood vessels through the organs and pours into the spaces between the organs, and from there it again enters the blood vessels and returns to the heart.

Gastropods have one or two kidneys. They receive substances that are unnecessary for the body from the blood.

Gastropods are characterized by scattered-nodular nervous system, which consists of several pairs of nerve ganglia connected by nerves. From the nodes, nerves extend to all organs.

Among gastropods there are both dioecious animals and hermaphrodites (ponds, coils, slugs). They lay eggs, from which small snails emerge that look like large ones. However, marine gastropods have a larval stage that is not like the adult, called a swallowtail.

scienceland.info

The photo shows my pet snail.

It would seem that a snail is a snail, and that’s all, it has a shell on its back, which, when it becomes small, it exchanges for a larger shell. But if you think about it, you can understand that you know nothing more about her than I wrote above. You don’t even know what it eats, whether it lays eggs, whether snails are born with or without shells, and how a snail differs from a slug.

You will find answers to everything listed above and even more in this article.

So, let's start with the most important and interesting:

1. Can a snail really change its home?

No, a snail cannot change its shell, since this is where almost all of its organs are located..

The snail body itself contains only a few organs. The stomach, heart, and lung are located in the shell. This is why the snail does not crawl inside the shell when you pick it up. This is also why it is mortally dangerous for a snail to damage its shell, or accidentally, say, fall and make a hole in it.

If a snail falls onto a stone from a sufficient height and damages its shell (by punching a hole or making a crack in it) and does not hit any organ, it will survive, but if the opposite happens, the snail will die. After a while, if the snail survives falling and making a hole in the shell, the hole in the shell will close.

The structure of the pulmonary cochlea: 1 - shells; 2 - digestive gland; 3 - light; 4 - anus; 5 - pneumostomy; 6 - eye; 7 - tentacle; 8 - brain; 9 - radula; 10 - mouth; 11 - goiter; 12 - salivary gland; 13 - gonopore; 14 - penis; 15 - vagina; 16 - mucous gland; 17 - oviduct; 18 - bag of love arrows; 19 - leg; 20 - stomach; 21 - kidney; 22 - mantle; 23 - heart; 24 - vas deferens.

2. What do snails eat?

Pulmonary snail.

In the wild, they feed mainly on herbs and mushrooms, but in general they are omnivores, so they can eat whatever they find.

If you have a snail at home, you need to feed it three times a week with fresh plant food, that is, vegetables, fruits, herbs, legumes and some other food products.

But - under no circumstances give your snail salty, sugary or seasoned food, otherwise the snail may die. Also don't forget about calcium and vitamins!

More than anything else, the snail loves cucumbers and can even eat them dried. But do not forget to change the food and water of the snails in the terrarium every day!

List of Edible Snail Foods

Raw carrots, zucchini, cucumbers, white (colored) and Chinese cabbage, potatoes, but it is advisable to boil them, dill, parsley, lettuce or grape leaves, apples, pears, bananas, peaches, nectarines, kiwi, strawberries, strawberries.

Grain mixtures or cereals are also suitable for land snails - rice, oatmeal, peas, corn, millet, wheat, small peanuts, pumpkin and sunflower seeds.

Of the mushrooms, champignons are best suited.

For strong and healthy calcium, buy a bone from a pet store and store it in the snail's terrarium.

Ground egg shells (previously washed and well dried) for calcium (they should be poured into the soil of the terrarium).

Inedible food

Salt (even a small amount can kill a snail), human foods from your table, all spices, fried foods, sweet, sour, smoked foods and spicy foods. Citrus fruits should also not be given, because this can negatively affect your pet’s shell.

3. How to determine the sex of a snail?

Snails are bisexual creatures, so it’s hard to think about what to call a snail, female or male name, no need, call it what you want!

And keep in mind - if you get two snails that have reached sexual maturity and are about the same age, you risk becoming the owner of a huge number of baby snails. But this may not happen, since the snails must also like each other.

4. How is a snail born?

Land and aquatic snails are different, some are viviparous, others lay eggs. A baby snail is born translucent and without a shell. Over time, the same transparent shell appears, and as the snail grows further, the shell becomes brown, and it itself becomes brownish rather than translucent white. So it is easy to determine how long ago she was born. Also, when a snail matures, it accordingly increases in size, but in order to actually increase and become larger, it requires a lot of food, and for the growth of the shell, calcium.

5. What do snails breathe?

The snail has a breathing hole.

Snails do not have a nose, and they breathe using a special hole in the shell, it can be easily seen with the naked eye, it is located at the bottom of the shell, from where the snail’s body extends. If this hole is under water, the snail will suffocate. Inside the snail's shell are the lungs with which it breathes.

Aquarium snails have both gills and lungs, which is why they can go without water for a long time.

6. What is the difference between a slug and a snail?

Slug is the general name for a number of gastropods that, in the course of evolutionary development, have undergone a reduction or complete loss of shell. Simply put, a slug is a gastropod land mollusk with a completely or partially lost shell. The slugs have only thick armor left from it.

In general, the slug is a very close relative of the snail, also a gastropod land mollusk, but only lacking a shell, but you should still remember a slug and a snail are different creatures.

www.berl.ru

The nervous system of most mollusks is represented by peripharyngeal nerve ring And four longitudinal nerve trunks(two visceral trunks that control the internal organs, and two pedal trunks - the leg), and many also have nerve ganglia - ganglia, the largest of which is suprapharyngeal ganglion. In octopuses and other cephalopods, it can, of course, be called the brain, but not in gastropods. Gastropods do not have a brain.
In addition to the suprapharyngeal ganglion, snails have five pairs of other ganglia, scattered throughout the body. This cerebral ganglia, which are located above the pharynx and innervate (control) the eyes, tentacles, the pharynx itself, as well as statocysts- organs of balance, which will be discussed below.
>The pedal ganglia are located in the leg, they are quite large and innervate the muscles of the leg. Next to the pedals - pleural ganglia, which control the mantle (including the opening and closing of the respiratory opening), and parietal ganglia control the respiratory organs of aquatic mollusks (gills), as well as the chemical sense organs of the snail, which are quite highly developed. Well, the last type of ganglia - visceral- innervate all internal organs of the cochlea. Sometimes another, sixth, type of ganglion is identified - buccal which innervate the pharynx. They are removed from the peripharyngeal ring and are located on the dorsal (dorsal) side of the pharynx in the place where it passes into the esophagus. The cerebral, pedal and visceral ganglia are connected in pairs by nerve cords - commissures: These are bundles of nerve fibers. All ganglia, except the cerebral ones, are located below the intestine. The cerebral ones are located above the esophagus. The pedal ganglia are located immediately below the esophagus, and their commissures and connectives connecting them with the cerebral ganglia form a nerve ring around the esophagus, which was already written about at the beginning of the section.
In many gastropods (including Akhachtina), due to the twisting of the body, a decussation is formed between the pleural and parietal ganglia. This intersection is called chiastoneuria.



Snails also have sensory organs: eyes, balance organs, touch And chemical sense organs. The eyes are simple: it is not yet fully clear how much they perceive the world around them with their eyes, but scientists are of the opinion that they can distinguish light from darkness and see some outlines of objects located at a distance of several centimeters from them. Visual pigment of snails - rhodopsin, but snails see in black and white.
Statocysts is an organ of balance in mollusks and other invertebrates, which lies in the region of the pedal ganglia. Its structure is quite simple compared to the balance organ of the same fish or birds. These are vesicles or dimples/cones buried under the body cover. There is liquid inside the statocysts, as well as otoliths/statoliths(solid formations on the surface of cells), which shift when the body of the cochlea changes its position in space. During displacement, the otoliths irritate the sensitive ciliated cells of the epithelium, from them the nerve impulse is transmitted along the nerves to the cerebral ganglia, the signal is processed in them and the cochlea changes its position.
The organs of touch are front tentacles snails, they also perceive smells and tastes, that is, they are also chemical sense organs. In addition to them, odors are perceived in gastropods generally by the entire front part of the head.

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Answers for young owners - do snails have teeth, legs and eyes?

In addition to the ordinary street snails that our grandparents kept at home when they were little, exotic mollusks from Africa have now become extremely popular. Breeders provide melancholy beauties with cozy places in their apartments and country houses. Many owners not only admire the beautiful Achatina, but also breed babies for sale. Beginning breeders who are just studying African individuals often ask, where are the snail’s eyes and do Achatina snails have teeth? For these and others interesting questions Experienced zoologists with many years of experience answer.

Read more about the structure of the Achatina snail in our article.

How many teeth does a snail have?

On thematic forums you can often find messages that baby Achatina have gnawed on their shells. Breeders are surprised how sharp the teeth of snails are, that they manage to destroy the strong shells of their neighbors?

For the information of young owners, the teeth of different animal species are arranged differently and are divided into certain groups. The cute creatures of Achatina can eat rough leaves and scrape small particles from chalk pieces. Upon closer inspection, it may seem that the mollusks are toothless, but their love of eating tough plants suggests otherwise. So does a snail have teeth and what are they for?

Interesting fact! Many consider the shark to be the most toothy animal on the planet, but in fact, the first place in this ranking is occupied by an ordinary grape hive!

So how many teeth does a snail have? Probably no one has ever looked into the mouth of a pet with a magnifying glass. Only based on data from a zoologist, we can say that the number of teeth in a snail reaches tens of thousands, and they are located on the tongue. It turns out that the tiny tongue of the snail resembles a fine grater, with the help of which Achatina scrapes and grinds food. It is important to remember that the digestion of mollusks is adapted to digest only small particles, and any large pieces can damage the tongue and kill even a large adult specimen.

Attention to novice breeders! The chitinous teeth of the snail have the same appearance and are not divided into groups. Small teeth are not designed for biting, and if individuals attack each other to gnaw on the shell, then the pets have obvious problems with calcium balance. How many teeth a snail has, the number of small cuts it can inflict on its weaker neighbor. Predatory mollusks use their grater to “drill” a hole in the oyster shell and completely eat its tender meat!

Let's look into the eyes of Achatina

In funny cartoons, Achatina eyes are drawn on long thin horns. Many breeders are of the opinion that the organs of vision of mollusks are located at the base of the antennae. But this is an erroneous opinion, and the time has come to figure out where Achatina’s eyes are?

It is known for sure that gastropods have poor vision and can only see objects at a distance of a few centimeters. Mollusks perfectly distinguish between light and darkness and can react to bright flashes not only with their eyes, but with their whole body. Experienced owners leave part of the aquarium in the shade when installing lighting. With a constant stream of bright light, the hives will constantly bury themselves in the ground and hide from external stimuli.

In cartoons, the head of a snail is correctly depicted; the eyes of the mollusks are located on thin horns and are almost invisible. On the head of the Achatina snail, where the eyes are concentrated, thousands of light-sensitive cells are concentrated. They form the lens, which is attached to the optic nerves. Babies have a limited angle of vision, and moving eye barrels help them better see various interesting objects.

Where hasn't a snail gone before?

From zoology lessons we know that the delicate body of a mollusk is hidden in a protective shell. All the vital organs are hidden in the shell, and only the funny snail’s head and flat belly peek out from the house.

Achatina crawls slowly, smoothly and very impressively. Young mollusk fishermen often ask how many legs does a snail have? This question can be safely answered - one.

The abdomen, with the help of which the exotic beauty moves along the ground, is called the snail’s leg. Alternate muscle contraction leads to wave-like movement of the sole. The mucus secreted by the individual facilitates gliding and reduces friction of the snail's leg on various rough surfaces. If you conduct an experiment and run a clam along the blade of a knife, it will not get hurt, but will gently envelop it.

When a child asks his mother how many legs does a snail have? You can easily answer this question and send your pet on a journey through transparent glass. WITH reverse side it will be visible how the muscles of the flat leg contract, and the mollusk strives to explore a new unknown space.

The snail's foot has absolutely unique properties. She can overcome any surface without harming herself. Extreme experimenters tested what would happen if a snail was hit by a blade.

Watch an amazing video of how a snail moves along a blade (not for the faint of heart)

Read more about the building in appearance African Achatina

The structure of a grape snail

The grape snail is considered not only the most highly organized compared to its other brethren, but also one of the largest. The dimensions of its shell reach a height of 45 mm and a width of 48-50 mm. The weight of the mollusk ranges from 23 to 46 grams. However, there may be more or less than the specified values. It all depends on the living conditions and nutrition of the gastropod.

Read also: What is the largest snail in the world?

The length of a muscular limb can vary from 35 to 50 millimeters. When extended, it reaches 90 mm. The mucus secreted by the sole makes movement easier. By the way, the speed at which the mollusk usually moves is about one and a half millimeters per second.

Grape snail shell

The shell of a grape snail has a diameter of 3.5 to 4-5 cm. Its volume is enough for the mollusk to fit completely inside. The shell is curved in a spiral, the number of turns in an adult is 4.5, in juveniles - a couple of turns. They are all wrapped to the right, starting from the head and clockwise. The shell is usually brownish-yellow, less often white. Often it depends on the background of the environment and serves as a camouflage from enemies. The shade of the shell may change over time. This depends on the age of the mollusk and the food it eats. The shell is ribbed to the touch, dotted with narrow pits.

Main functions of the sink:

• protection internal organs from damage;
• preventing large evaporation of moisture;
• camouflage from enemies.

Grape snail heart

The cardiac muscle of the snail has only the left atrium, located in front of the ventricle. It fits completely over the hindguts. It is surrounded by the pericardium, which is a section of the secondary cavity of the body.

The aorta originates from the ventricle and divides into two trunks. The first is the cephalic aorta, going to the front of the body, the second is the splanchnic aorta, going to the gastrointestinal tract and gonads.

Read also: The structure of the elder sister of the grape snail - Achatina

Reproductive system

This type of gastropod is hermaphrodite. But despite this fact, fertilization without a partner is extremely rare. Their copulatory organ is located in an unusual place - on the right side of the neck, closer to the head. Here are both men's and female organs. In an individual ready to reproduce, the genital pore turns white and increases in size. Then a partner becomes necessary. Typically, a smaller individual takes on the role of inseminator, and the larger snail bears the offspring. According to nature's idea, large is synonymous with hardy. This means that such a mollusk will be able to spend part of its own resources without much damage to its health.

Read also: Younger sister - small snail subbulina

Snail sense organs

The role of the sense organs is provided by two pairs of tentacles, which are constantly in motion. The longer one serves as the nose of the gastropod. Short, posterior, are eyes capable of distinguishing objects at a distance of one centimeter and reacting to light.

Many snails are sensitive to odors, including cabbage. Even without seeing the fork or leaf itself, they are able to smell it at a distance of half a meter, just like a melon.

The mollusk grinds food using a grater tongue equipped with 25 thousand tiny teeth. At the same time, he is not able to bite, and in principle cause pain.

ulitochki.ru

Spiral snail house

We should, perhaps, start with the part that actually characterizes the snail - with its shell.

Snails acquired this item hundreds of millions of years ago. During this time, this unusual, spiral-shaped cocoon managed to acquire the design and shape that are most beneficial for the mollusk’s body, do not burden its movement and do not restrict its movements.

Snails can be divided into two types: some of them have a shell, while others do not. These second type of snails are commonly called slugs or slugs. Moreover, both the shell and the mantle can vary greatly depending on various circumstances and, of course, depending on the type of snail.

Some types of snails have shells, while others do not - this is how nature designed them.

For example, Achatina, which lives in an environment with high humidity, has a rather thin and even somewhat transparent shell. Those whose habitat is not so humid have a hard and durable shell. At the same time, for snails living in hot climates, the color of their house is usually light or even white, while “Nordic” snails are darker. This is explained by the fact that the white color of the shell allows it to better reflect the sun's rays and thereby protect the snail from overheating.

Regardless of what species the snail belongs to, what type of shell it is and its lifestyle, any shell performs a number of mandatory tasks:
1. Protecting the snail’s body from loss of moisture, that is, from drying out;
2. Protecting the animal from enemies;
3. Protecting the snail's body from external damage.

As for the pattern and color in which the shell is painted, this is perhaps the most mysterious side of a snail’s life. Despite all the research, to this day no one really knows anything about why snails of the same species that live in the same conditions, and have exactly the same nutrition, lighting, environmental humidity, and so on, have shells painted in different colors and having different patterns. Some of them are very brightly colored and with amazing patterns, while others, living with them in the same molluscarium, have very inexpressive shells.

True, there is one observation: if all the snails in the cochlea (molluscaria) have the same dull shell, then this clearly indicates that the diet of the gastropods lacks some substances and feeding is not organized correctly.

By the way, if for one reason or another a chip is noticed on the sink or if the owner notices that particles of the sink are hanging around the edges, he should under no circumstances break them off himself. If you want to help your pet, you need to put it on a damp cloth, and then the snail itself will start repairing its home. Unfortunately, such damage does not go away without a trace and after it there are still irregularities on the edge of the sink.

What do snails walk on?

Due to their specific lifestyle, gastropods have a very developed sole. Waves of muscle contractions pass along the sole, thanks to which the mollusk is able to move on almost any conceivable and inconceivable surface. On the surface you can also find two glands that secrete mucus. The snail needs mucus to make it easier for it to move on dry surfaces, ensuring proper gliding. Moreover, small snails move due to the beating of the cilia.

Few people know that the force with which a snail can stick to any flat surface, like glass, is very great. Under no circumstances should you tear the snail away from such surfaces, and if you have to do this, you should be careful and be very careful, first removing the edge of the sole using a non-sharp thin object. If this is not done, the owner will need to make much more effort to tear the pet off the surface. It is very easy to squeeze your fingers too tightly, which can cause the animal's shell to be damaged or completely cracked.

Snail eyes

The organs of vision are located in these mollusks at the ends of their horns. In fact, these, of course, are not horns at all, but this is what the general public usually calls the tentacles of a snail, which are located on its head. Thanks to such original eyes, the snail can assess the degree of illumination and even see specific objects at a distance of one centimeter.

It is noteworthy that snails can perceive light not only with their eyes, but with their entire body. The snail's body contains light-sensitive cells, so these mollusks are extremely sensitive to lighting that is too bright by snail standards, which is why they don't like it. Actually, this is one of the reasons why snails are most active in the evening and at night. Therefore, when keeping them, this trait of snails should be taken into account and not turn the snail into a sunny beach.

On the one hand, snails need an incandescent lamp, which will provide the temperature they need in their room (at otherwise they will simply go into hibernation), but on the other hand it is necessary to make a barrier behind which the pet could hide. Otherwise, it will constantly sit buried in the ground.

Snail's horns

In addition to the fact that the snail has large tentacles on which its eyes are located, it has a couple of exactly the same ones, only small in size. These little horns are responsible for the senses of touch and smell, as well as another ability called the “chemical sense.”

This feeling is a reaction to those odors that are of artificial origin, such as alcohol, acetone or gasoline. A snail can sense such aromas from a distance of four centimeters, which is quite a lot for it. We can say that this sense of the snail is four times better developed than its vision! In addition, the skin at the entrance to the respiratory surface of the cochlea, the anterior edge of the leg, head and anterior surface of the body has a “chemical sense”.

As for the ordinary sense of smell, these mollusks have a developed and absolutely amazing sense of smell: for example, they can smell cabbage or melon from a distance of fifty centimeters, and they can smell the remains of a tree or the smell of decaying leaves from an even greater distance - from two meters!

Many of those who have not gone into the details of the life of snails believe that a pair of small tentacles, among other things, are responsible for the perception of sounds, but this is not so. The fact is that snails do not have hearing. To verify this, it will be enough to open the lid of the molluscar and shout into it. The snail will not even move, since the world of sounds does not exist for it.

Snail teeth

In fact, we are not talking about teeth, but about one tooth, which is located, as befits this part of the body, in the snail’s mouth. It is small in size, but quite sharp. In fact, this is a kind of chitinous grater, thanks to which the snail scrapes small particles from the surface of fruits and plants, using them as food. With the help of the same tooth, the snail grinds the scraped particles, so that it performs not only scraping, but also chewing function. A snail can even bite a finger with such a tooth, but this is completely painless for a person and is more like a tingling sensation. Sometimes it can be so light that you may not notice it at all.

All organs of the snail’s body are unique and amazing in their own way, and the functions that the body of these mollusks perform will probably be very difficult to find among other representatives of the fauna living in our homes. Let's be attentive to our pets and not be lazy in studying the structure of their body. And then they will delight us with their blooming appearance and leisurely beauty, inherent only to them.

animalreader.ru

Snail: body structure

Based on the image above, consider internal structure typical gastropod:

1. Mouth opening.
2. Animal's throat.
3. At some distance from the mouth, the salivary glands.
4. This top layer is the intestines.
5. At the very “core” is the liver.
6. Output of the anus.
7. The heart of the animal is located at the back of the body.
8. In close proximity to the heart is the kidney.
9. Removal of waste products produced by the kidney.
10. This entire cavity is occupied by the lung.
11. Breathing hole.
12. The peripharyngeal nerve nodes are ganglia.
13. Hermaphrodite gland.
14. This tape is the egg-vas deferens.
15. Oviduct.
16. Actually, the vas deferens.
17. Flagellum is a flagellum.
18. A bag with “love arrows” that provoke reproduction.
19. Location of the protein gland.
20. Duct and cavity of the spermatic receptacle.
21. Sexual opening.
22. Pericardial region (“heart sac”).
23. The opening is renopericardial.

By the way, snails are one of the most ancient inhabitants of our planet. Scientists suggest that they appeared on Earth about 500 million years ago. Amazing creatures are able to adapt to any environment and do not need a lot of food.

The structure of the vital systems of the snail

1. Respiratory system. The snail's lungs are a relatively large area of ​​the mantle region, enveloped in a dense network of thin blood vessels. Air enters through the breathing hole and gas exchange occurs through thin vascular walls.
2. Digestive system. Represented by a rather extensive oral area. But the jaws, the radula (“grater” with numerous teeth) are hidden in the pharynx. The products of the salivary glands are also excreted here. The short esophagus of the snail passes into the voluminous cavity of the crop, which, in turn, flows into a relatively small stomach. The latter “embraces” the liver along its entire circumference, which occupies the upper spirals of the animal’s shell. From here comes a loop-shaped intestine, which passes into the hind intestine. Its natural opening is on the right, next to the breathing hole. It should be noted that the snail liver is not only a digestive gland, but also an organ where processed food is absorbed.
3. Sense organ system. The structure of snails includes organs of balance, touch, smell and vision. The eyes are located on the upper parts of the “horns”. In snails, this is the so-called optic vesicle - an invagination of the body integument. The eye is filled with a crystalline lens - a spherical lens, and the optic nerve approaches its bottom. It must be said that only the front wall of the optic vesicle is transparent, the back and sides are pigmented.
4. Nervous system. The “brain” of the cochlea is made up of ganglia: cephalic, foot, pleural (cavitary) - paired; trunk, pallial, pariental - single. There are also a number of peripheral (local) nerves located throughout the body. The cerebral (head), pedal (foot sole) and pleural (body) ganglia are connected by the most noticeable connectives.

Let's look at the differences and similarities in the structure of different species - using the example of the grape snail and the Achatina snail.

Grape snail: shell and body

The grape snail (Helix pomatia) is a member of the order of pulmonate snails of the helicidae family. She is considered the most highly organized of her brothers. By gender characteristics - hermaphrodite.

The structure of a grape snail is a shell and a body, consisting of an internal sac, a leg and a head. The internal organs of the animal, in turn, are shrouded in a mantle, which is visible from the outside.

The structure of snails is also the structure of their shell. Since the animal leads a terrestrial lifestyle, this shell is strong - it protects the body from damage and drying out, and saves it from predators. Depending on the place of residence, the color of the shell varies from white-brown to yellow-brown. The height of the “house” is up to 50 mm, width – up to 45 mm. Its shape is cube-shaped, with a ribbed surface and curls expanding towards the mouth.

The body of this species is elastic, muscular, rich in wrinkles and folds that allow it to retain moisture. Color - beige, brownish with a special pattern. The length of the muscular leg is 35-50 mm (extended - up to 90 mm). To facilitate movement (its speed is 1.5 mm/s), mucus is secreted on the sole of the foot.

Surprisingly, the average lifespan of a snail is 15 years. Moreover, under unfavorable conditions, it can hibernate for six months. As soon as a cold period of time sets in, the snail hides in the ground, pulls its head and leg into the shell and closes the entrance with mucus, which hardens over time.

Sense organs of a grape snail

There are two pairs of movable tentacles on the animal’s head. The front, longer one, is the “nose” of the cochlea. The posterior, extending ones are eyes that can distinguish objects at a distance of up to 10 mm, and also respond to lighting.

Speaking about the structure of snails, we note that many of them are very sensitive to odors - they “smell” cabbage at a distance of up to 40 cm, and ripe melon - up to 50 cm. The radula, a grater tongue, helps them grind food.

Achatina snails

Representatives of the Achatina family are terrestrial pulmonary gastropods. Their shell is impressive in size and strength. Moreover, in individuals living in a southern climate, it is white in color - to reflect the sun's rays and is thicker. For those living in humid areas, it is thin and even transparent.

The skin of the Achatina body is wrinkled and folded. In addition to pulmonary respiration, they also have skin respiration. The contractile sole is developed. It is equipped with glands that secrete mucus for ease of movement.

The tentacles on the head perform the same function as in grape snails - eyes and sense of smell.

Sense organs Achatina

Achatina snails have the following sensory organ structure:

1. Organs of vision. Snails not only distinguish objects at a distance of up to 1 cm using a pair of eyes at the tips of their tentacles, but also have light-sensitive cells in their bodies.
2. Achatina's sense of smell is a “chemical sense.” It includes the tentacles-“noses”, and the front part of the head, body and legs. At a distance of up to 4 cm, they react to alcohol, gasoline, and acetone.
3. Tentacles and sole - touch.
4. The Achatina snail, whose body structure is discussed in this article, has no hearing.

During reproduction, each individual is both male and female. Pressing their soles closely together, they exchange spermatophores and then lay eggs.

The structure of the cochlea of ​​the inner ear

Finally, let's talk about the person. We call the cochlea the organ of the inner ear, whose system is represented by a labyrinth. It, in turn, consists of a bone capsule and a membranous formation inside it.

Sections of the bony labyrinth:

• vestibule;
• actually, a snail;
• semicircular formations.

The cochlea is wrapped in a bone spiral of 2.5 turns in the ear around the bone rod. According to some scientists, its material is the strongest in the human body. The height of the organ is 5 mm, the width of its base is 9 mm.

Inside, the cochlea is divided into three regions by longitudinal lines of membranes. Perilymph is contained in the tympanic and scala vestibular organs, which communicate through the helicotherm at the apex of the cochlea. The middle scala contains endolymph. It is separated from the scala tympani by a basilar membrane with sensitive hairs, which is in contact with the tectorial membrane located above.

This entire device together is called the organ of Corti. This is where sound waves are converted into electrical nerve impulses.

The structure of snails - both animals and human organs - is striking in its volumetric content and the harmony of its relatively small size. To get to know him better is to once again be convinced of the genius of nature.

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Old age of the Achatina snail

In nature, the African snail lives up to 10-13 years. However, in captivity, its lifespan can be reduced by 2-3 times. At the age of four, Achatina is already considered an old woman. Its shell loses its natural pigmentation, gradually fading from the top. Snail breeders jokingly call it gray hair.

With age, Achatina's appetite decreases, she begins to eat less and rest more. This is due to a lack of enzymes and a violation of the intestinal microflora, leading to a decrease in the absorption of nutrients and vitamins. The snail is losing weight, noticeably losing weight, spending most of its time in the shell. How to help an aging snail?

Care and feeding

Try to avoid sudden changes in the snail’s living conditions (temperature, humidity, new neighbors). Change the soil in parts, not all at once. Change your diet.

• raw, boiled pumpkin. It contains carotene (vitamin A);
• vegetable purees without salt with calcium mixture (potatoes are not allowed);
• ground steamed grain mixture with gammarus or small shrimp (without salt);
• freshly squeezed juice of cucumber, carrot, tomato or sweet pepper.

If your pet refuses food, spread vegetable puree or steamed grain mixture (cooled) on its face. He will definitely lick the food and repeat this several times. It is believed that milk cannot be digested in the snail's body and leads to the loss of internal organs. Perhaps, but swimming in it often works wonders. Ulya comes to life, her appetite and activity appear. Therefore, in case of Achatina illness and refusal to eat, I recommend milk baths.

What causes snail death

There can be many reasons for the death of a mollusk, but let’s focus on the main ones:

• improper care;
• poor quality food;
• snail poisoning;
• chemical or thermal burns;
• diseases.

Sometimes we ourselves are to blame for the premature death of a snail. For example, the coconut soil was poorly washed (sea water is used in its production), fed with greenhouse vegetables and herbs (high level chemical substances), used purchased fertilizer (of questionable production), etc. You can object that the snail died abruptly, without visible reasons. However, such cases are extremely rare and are most often caused by hereditary diseases. Typically the snail dies within a few days or weeks. Which is accompanied by the torment of the animal and our terrible feeling of helplessness. Is it possible to help a dying snail? The answer is ambiguous, since it is not always possible to help. Therefore, experienced snail breeders artificially stop the snail’s torment by freezing it. Achatina simply falls asleep in the freezer forever. But you can try to fight for your pet's life.

How to help a snail

• Isolate from other snails;
• Use damp white sheets of paper as primer;
• Spray it with warm water to lure it out of the shell and feed it;
• For food, use vegetable puree with calcium and protein;
• Then offer a grain mixture with buckwheat or oatmeal;
• If you refuse food, bathe in vegetable juice or milk.

Signs of snail death or how to understand that Achatina has died

The dead snail does not respond to irrigation with warm water and is located deep in the shell, from which dark liquid flows. The body of the mollusk becomes yellow and hard to the touch. After a few days, an unpleasant, corpse-like smell appears in the terrarium - rotten fish or eggs. This means that your pet has “gone over the rainbow.”
Dead snails are rarely buried. Sometimes owners leave a shell in memory of their beloved pet

How to keep a snail shell as a souvenir

• boil a dead snail in salt water;
• remove the entire body of the mollusk from the shell.

It is important to completely remove the snail's body from the shell, as even a small piece will begin to decompose and emit an unpleasant odor. Then the shell of the mollusk can be varnished.

So, in captivity, snails do not live long, as they are completely dependent on the conditions we create, the food they consume, and the diseases they suffer. At the age of 4-5 years, the snail begins to age, its shell turns white, activity and appetite decrease, and various sores cling to it. They are often the cause of death of the mollusk. Snail breeders use all the proposed treatment methods in the hope of prolonging the life of their pet. Unfortunately, more than 90% of snails die, since there are no effective drugs to treat them. What can we do to accept death and leave the shell in memory of the giant African snail Achatina.

What do you think? Is it possible to help a dying snail?

ahatiny.ru

Structure

The body of Achatina reaches 30 cm in length, and its shell is up to 25 cm in diameter. This snail has a conical shell with 7 to 9 turns, which is most often twisted counterclockwise, but can also be twisted in the opposite direction. Depending on nutrition and other living conditions, Achatina shells have stripes of different shades on a brown background. With age, the shell becomes greenish in color. A very durable and massive shell protects the soft body of the snail from mechanical damage and enemies, and also protects the body from drying out. Living in humid conditions, Achatina has a thinner and more transparent shell, and in dry and hot conditions it has a thick-walled white shell that protects the mollusk from overheating.

Since Akhatana is a land animal, it has a well-developed leg, with the help of which it moves due to wave-like contractions of the sole. To reduce friction when moving on a dry surface, the snail secretes mucus from the foot glands located on the sole. Achatina has pulmonary breathing, but it also additionally breathes through the wrinkled, folded skin of the body. Achatina has a scattered nodular nervous system consisting of several ganglia. The circulatory system is not closed, with colorless blood. The heart consists of one atrium and ventricle and is covered with pericardium. There is an excretory organ - one kidney.
On the head of the snail there is a mouth and two pairs of retractable antennae-tentacles. At the ends of the longer tentacles there are eyes, at the short ones there are terminal swellings - the organ of smell. Achatina's eyes can distinguish the degree of illumination and see everything at a distance of up to 1 cm. They perceive lighting not only with their eyes, but also with light-sensitive cells on the body. The terminal swellings of the tentacles, as well as the entire skin of the anterior parts of the body, head and anterior edge of the leg, are responsible for the “chemical feeling”. They have a very strongly developed sense of perception of the smell of food. Thus, they smell cabbage at a distance of up to 0.5 meters, and the decaying remains of woody plants - at a distance of up to two meters. The sole and tentacles of the snail are organs of touch. But these mollusks have completely no hearing. In the mouth of Achatina there is a radula - a tongue with horny spines, with the help of which it scrapes off food for itself.

Achatina cannot tolerate bright light, as they are nocturnal animals. During the day they hide in secluded places or burrow into the ground, and become active at night, but in damp places they are also active during the day. It has been proven that Achatina have long-term memory, so they remember where food is located and return to it. Young individuals are more active and often migrate over long distances, while older individuals prefer old familiar places, not moving more than 5 m away. Achatina are heat-loving animals, so they are active at temperatures of 9-29 ° C, but can survive at 2 ° C C. Under unfavorable conditions, snails hibernate, sometimes for a long time - up to 12 months.

Reproduction

Achatina are hermaphrodites and undergo cross fertilization. During reproduction, each individual performs the functions of both a male and a female. They lay fertilized eggs of 20-30 pieces in piles, which they then bury. There may be several dozen such piles. Young snails are born after 2-3 weeks, and after 1.5 months they are already sexually mature adults. On average, Achatina live 5-6 years, but they can live longer.

Achatina does not survive in the northern zones, so they are bred in terrariums as an exotic animal, and in some countries they are eaten.