Snail
snail
snail crawling on glass
There are three kinds of snails: ‘land snail’, ‘sea snail’ and ‘fresh-water snail’!
a kind of animal – mollusc – soft-bodied – univalve (= single shelled) – slowing-moving – nocturnal (= most active at nigh) – different species (kinds) in different colours – closely related to the ‘slugs’ – two pairs (4) tentacles on the head part – one pair for eyes and one for smelling and feeling the way around, a mouth with many very small teeth-like organs to chew on the leaves, a foot-like organ on the underside in the middle of the long body, called ‘foot’; size: (varies very widely) form 0.02 inches to 2½ feet long, and weight: from a few milligrams to 900 grams; feeds on (eats) – (land snail) plant matter; (water snail) plankton (= very small plants), algae, and zooplankton (= very, very small animals); lives for (the lifespan also varies very widely) some species (kinds) live for 1 year only, but some 2-3 or 5-7, yet some others, for 10-15 years (some individuals live up to 30 years); about 80,000 (?) of which 40,000 land species, found all over the world
Snails are grouped (categorised) basing on how they breathe: snails with lungs and snails with gills. The snails with lungs live on land or in water; the snails with gills also live on land or in water!!
[A group of snails is called a ‘escargatoire’, ‘rout’, and ‘walk’.]
Special Features:
The Australian marine (sea) snail grows to 2½ feet in length and 18 Kg. in weight, but there are some snails which measure only 0.02 inches in length!
snails as food
The snails have been eaten by humans for thousands of years!
In the recent times, the most popular ‘snail dish’ is the “escargot” – snails cooked in their shells and served with butter and sauce! Land snails move on land by crawling, and the water snails move by swimming and/or by just floating! On land, snails are one of the slow-moving animals. Snails move with the help of a ‘foot-like’ organ on their abdomen which also secretes the slimy substance on which the snails moves smoothly.
snail slime
With the help of this slime, a snail can crawl on rough and sharp objects, such as knives, razors, gravel, etc., without getting hurt; besides, it can crawl on very smooth objects, such as ‘glass’, and can crawl upside down, too. Most snails move at a speed of 23 inches per hour, but there are some fast-moving snails that can move at speeds of 40 feet or even 158 feet per hour – an amazing speed record for a snail!!
snail slime face cream
Snails have different shapes of shell – some are cone/spiral; some are round; and some others are flat! Whatever be the shape of the shell, a snail can pull itself (retract) back into it when threatened, or to hibernate (= go into a long sleep when the weather is bad). Some species of snail have a door-like organ at the entrance of the shell, which they can draw at will!
Snails cannot hear, but they can smell and feel things (food) very well.
A single snail can be ‘male and female’ – two in one! Though it needs another snail to exchange sperm to lay eggs, in case of non-availability of another one, it can produce fertilised eggs by itself!!
Some people keep snails as pets in their fish tanks!
Figures of Speech:
1.
snail (noun) = a slow-moving or lazy person
2.
(a) at a snail’s pace (‘pace’, in this context = speed)
(b) to go at a snail’s pace = (to go or move) at a very slow speed; very slow progress of a project, plan, etc.
3.
as slow as a snail = very, very slow
4.
to whip a snail = at a snail’s pace; very slow
5.
(a) the snail slides up the tower at last though the swallow mounts it sooner (‘swallow’, in this context, = a kind of bird)
(b) the snail is as soon at its rest as the swallow [said as a piece of advice not to insult a slow worker or a dull person]
6.
tramp on a snail and it’ll shoot out its horns [said to imply that even the humblest or polite person will react aggressively when kept on threatening or teasing or insulting]
7.
draws in his horns like a snail at a Bairn’s finger = draws back quickly {‘at a Bairn’s finger = when touched (?)} (‘horns’, in this context, = snail’ tentacles) [said when a person gives up an argument or a fight]
Mr. Kumar, an English language teacher, having taught in many countries around the world including Ethiopia and Oman shares this English Language Reference website using material that he has written and compiled during the past 20 years.
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