The garden snail is a herbivore and has a wide range of host plants (It feeds on plants only). It feeds on numerous types of fruit trees, vegetable crops, garden flowers, and cereals.
It is a food source for many other animals, including small mammals, many bird species, lizards, frogs, centipedes, predatory insects, and predatory terrestrial snails. Helix aspersa can be used as an indicator of environmental contamination, as its shell acts as a site for deposition of toxic heavy metals, such as lead.
Life cycle:
Like other Pulmonata, Helix aspersa is a hermaphrodite, producing both male and female gametes. Reproduction is usually sexual, although self-fertilisation can occur. During a mating session of several hours, two snails exchange sperm. The garden snail uses love darts during mating.
After about two weeks approximately 80 spherical pearly-white eggs are laid into crevices in the topsoil. Up to six batches of 80 eggs can be laid in a year. The size of the egg is 4 mm. The young snails take one to two years to reach maturity.
Parasites:
Parasites of Helix aspersa include:
- nematod Nemhelix bakeri (family Cosmocercidae)
Behaviour:
Helix aspersa feeding in captivity
The snail’s muscular foot contracts to move the animal, and secretes mucus to facilitate locomotion by reducing friction against the substrate. It moves at a top speed of 1.3 centimetres per second (47 meters per hour or ~50 yards per hour), and has a strong homing instinct, readily returning to a regular hibernation site.
Human relevance:
Garden snail in Israel.
The species is an agricultural and garden pest, an edible delicacy, and occasionally a household pet. In French cuisine, it is known as petit gris, and is served for instance in Escargot a la Bordelaise. The practice of rearing snails for food is known as heliciculture.
For purposes of cultivation, the snails should be kept in a dark place in a wired cage with dry straw or dry wood. Coppiced wine-grape vines are often used for this purpose. During the rainy period the snails will come out of hibernation and release most of their mucus onto the dry wood/straw.
The snails are then prepared for cooking. Their texture is slightly chewy. There are a variety of snail control measures that gardeners and farmers can take to reduce damage. Traditional pesticides are still in use, as are many less toxic control options such as concentrated garlic or wormwood solutions.
Copper metal is repellent to snails. A copper band around the trunk of a tree will prevent snails from climbing up and reaching the foliage and fruit. The decollate snail (Rumina decollata) will capture and eat garden snails, so it is sometimes introduced as a biological pest control agent.
Recently, Helix aspersa has gained popularity as the chief ingredient in skin creams and gels (crema/gel de caracol) sold within the Latino community and used for wrinkles, scars, dry skin, and acne.
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