Fun Forest Facts, #2

Sally Snail is AMAZING!

Happy Monday, Forest Trekkers!! It's a beautiful day, and Sally Snail has some information she would like me to share with you all!

Snails are shelled GASTROPODS, also known as MOLLUSCS. Snails have coiled shells that are large enough for them to retract completely into. Their shells grow as they grow!

Sally Snail is a herbivore, so she eats plants and algae. Snails come out in early Spring, and can be seen everywhere! Garden snails also feed on fungi, rotting vegetation, and garden debris.

They are also some of nature's slowest pollinators! Pollen grains attach to their bodies when they pass, or visit a flower, and then fall off when they visit other flowers!

We see many snails on the sidewalks, and forest trails. We are very careful not to step on them. We gently pick them up, and place them safely in the grass in the direction they were going. If you put them in the grass where they started from, they will attempt to cross again!

Please don't think of snails as a nuisance. Remember all the beautiful contributions they make to the natural world!

SNAIL SAVERS!! Sally would love to hear about how many snails you find, and save!