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The amazing snail
Did you know that a snail can crawl over a razor-blade without cutting itself? Sounds amazing, yet it’s true. Also, you must have seen a snail moving slowly across the ground. And you wondered: how does it ‘walk’?
The fact is that the whole under part of a snail’s body is really a ‘foot’! This foot is flat and smooth, and quite tough. It contains muscles which the snail uses to creep gently along the ground. Tiny glands located in the foot ooze out a slimy fluid that enables the snail to glide over the surface with a wavelike movement.
Snails belong to the mollusk family (a class of animals without backbones) and there are two main types. Those belonging to the first type always have a shell, and snails belonging to the second type are known as slugs.
Despite its small size, the snail is a remarkable little creature. An interesting fact about it is that it never gets lost and always traces its way back to its ‘home’ regardless of the distance it has traveled.
The snail has a tongue that is like a file, with numerous tiny teeth. It uses this to cut and shred its food.
Incredible as it may sound, but in some parts of the world, snails are considered a delicacy!
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