IFL Science: “It Can Suck Down Earthworms Like Spaghetti”: The Mission To Save A Really Big Snail

 

“It Can Suck Down Earthworms Like Spaghetti”: The Mission To Save A Really Big Snail



It’s hard not to feel jealous of New Zealand, home to some of the planet’s most spectacular organisms. They’ve got blue mushrooms and the world’s rarest and most eccentric birds (that aren’t easy to get sperm from, FYI). The most recent specimen to catch our eye? A snail whose worm slurping skills makes that spaghetti scene in Lady And The Tramp look amateur.

If this is your first time hearing about the snail Powelliphanta hochstetteri, prepare to be impressed. For starters, these babies are massive. About the size of a lemon, they have beautiful brown shells and big black bodies. Becoming such a unit takes calories, which is why these snails have developed a taste for meat.

“These snails are quite special because they’re carnivorous,” said science advisor and director of operations for Project Janszoon Ruth Bollongino to Justine Hausheer for The Nature Conservancy. “They’re not after the lettuce in your garden. They’re out hunting worms and other snails, and they can suck down earthworms like spaghetti.”


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