Literature Review of Snails

Walking on water? No problem for snails. New invention for underwater propulsion!

The motion of the water snail is by undulation of the snail foot that is separated from the free surface by a thin layer of mucus. By assuming the shape of the snail foot to be a traveling sine wave and the mucus to be Newtonian, an evolution equation for the interface shape is obtained and the resulting propulsive force on the snail can be calculated.

Snail crawling underneath water surface recorded in Germany!

The undulation of the snail foot causes surface deformations with a characteristic wavelength of 1 mm and amplitude of 0.2–0.3 mm. This deformation appears to travel in the opposite direction of the snail motion, suggesting the generation of retrograde waves.

Another notable feature of water snail propulsion is the presence of a trail of mucus. For land snails, this mucus layer is typically 10 – 20 micrometer in thickness; as with land snails its rheological characteristics may also play a significant role in underwater locomotion. Since these water snails are also able to crawl on solid substrates, one might venture that their mucus properties do not differ too greatly from those of land snails. 

Discussion on the locomotion of the water snails and its comparison with land snails:

The interplay between the free surface and the snail foot distinguishes water snail locomotion from that of their terrestrial counterparts. The shape of the snail foot alone determines the pressure and shear stresses generated within the mucus layer. For water snails, however, the interface is deformed due to the flow created in the mucus by the foot undulation; the interface, in turn, affects the dynamics within the mucus layer, creating pressure and shear stresses that act on the foot. This nonlinear coupling between the foot geometry, surface tension, and dynamics within the mucus layer makes the water snail locomotion a less straightforward mode of loco- motion. 

This study is only the first step towards a quantitative understanding of gastropod crawling beneath free surfaces. 

Know your snail!

Information about these snails were tabulated to show the differences between them. Many snails come in different shapes and sizes, and snails exist in almost every part of the world as well.

Types of Snails (Open in new tab to enlarge)

Life Cycle of a Snail

Once we've understood some examples of different snails species, next would be a table explaining the life cycle of Snails, from birth to adulthood and then reproduction.

Life Cycle of Snail (Open in new tab to enlarge)

More Facts!

Overall we'd like to conclude this post with a table of interesting snail facts. Snails are commonly known to be slow, but they make up for it with special abilities and traits. 

Facts (Open in new tab to enlarge)