New research appearing in the Proceedings of the Royal Society Biological Sciences reveals that these animals conserve energy by slipping along the tracks of mucus left by other snails. By gliding on these “snail superhighways” instead of forging a new road, they do not have to produce as much new mucus to facilitate their movement. “Snails expend a lot of energy, probably one-third, creating mucus. This process is very taxing indeed,” explains Mark Davies of the University of Sunderland, who led the new study.
Roxanne Khamsi, online reporter (Image: Richard Stafford)