I’d like to know what this little snail is searching for. Perhaps a leafy bed to lie in? Or maybe some petals to snack on? Might it simply like the color blue?
I’m fortunate that snails aren’t much of a problem in my garden. They’re in the garden, but not damaging. The trundle along, slow and steady, and quiet.
Except when I step on one. Snails aren’t quiet when I accidentally step on one.
Crunch.
I feel badly when that happens and apologize. I suppose that’s a hollow gesture.
Possibly, curiosity drives this one to search. It halted progress downward as I approached, wiggling its antennae, sniffing its surroundings.
Do antennae smell scents? Apparently, they do. As well, snails use antennae for movement and orientation, and sometimes, for sight. Useful things.
I hope the snail climbed out, made its way down the bottle tree, and relocated itself to flatter ground before our recent rains. I haven’t seen it since I snapped this photo, but would I know this snail–irrespective of size–from any other?
Probably not.
If you’re searching for something fun, interesting, or beautiful, check out Anna’s Flutter and Hum for Wednesday Vignette musings.
My Gardener Says... 
Every now and then I find a snail climbing up the side of a boat. How they get there, I can’t say, but fiberglass can’t be an appealing environment for a snail. Surely they don’t spend days crawling down the dock to find one! I always pluck them off and carry them back to land. It seems the least I can do.
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They are funny critters. Where do they come from? It almost seems as if the atmosphere creates them. I also usually move them when I see them in the garden, but I’ve never had any real issues with them. I think the only time they were truly damaging was one spring when they went whole-hog on my iris straps. That was annoying!
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Their eggs in the soil look like white fish eggs. They hatch teeny tiny, shell and all, by our observation this year.
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That is a good photo of the snail. You must keep your camera handy. I have lot of those little snails. I find them in my watering cans and sometimes in the spouts of my small can. I will remove them from my beds to start a new life elsewhere.
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Thanks, Judy! I must say, photographing snails is much easier than photographing warblers. 🙂
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Much slower.
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Funny, and glad I’m not alone in apologizing to little critters! I hate when I accidentally harm one of them. Maybe not quite not as sad with snails and slugs, but damaging earthworms makes me sad – especially the big, fat, grandpa types. They made it so far in life, and all of a sudden, this big, clumsy human brings them down. Sigh…
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I’m always “talking” to things in the garden. I say ‘good morning’, ‘hi’, whatever to my fav birds, sweet talk my honeybees (they still sting, though ): ), say ‘hey’ to all the other pollinators. My neighbors think I’m nuts. I am. 🙂
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Does the snail wonder what we are doing?
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I’ve wondered the same thing!
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Too much wondering going on.
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Hahaha. Snails are everywhere… even on phone 😉
I suppose like with all things, we shift as the balance does.
I used to apologize for an accidental snail crunch. Now, if I’m in the gardens, I throw them over the wall to the parking lot for the birds to find in pieces. If I’m home, the kids have shifted from gingerly moving them from garden to yard (you can watch them slide back across the sidewalk to the garden…) to stomping on them.
Lessons in conservation at our house have shifted to conversations about balance in nature and the intrusion of humans removing the balance (like snail predators.)
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I have to admit, that crunch is weirdly satisfying…:)
I guess because they’ve never been a real nuisance in my garden, I can extend some compassion towards them. I certainly don’t feel the same way about fire ants (which I haven’t seen in a while) or cockroaches. Ew, I really hate those things. Yuck!
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The ants are waking up in the community gardens… my best fun with them is a whistling tea kettle after I stir them up with a shovel. If I can’t get the water to them that hot (community garden) I have found success with a mix of borax and peanut butter.
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They are fascinating creatures. What a fun photo!
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They are interesting–until they munch, munch away! Then, they’re annoying
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And now I feel like a villain! But there are too many exceptionally destructive snails here 😦
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I never see snails in the garden, but I do see occasional slugs.
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My garden is opposite: snails (a few), no slugs.
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