BBC Wildlife - UK (2021-12)

Soft on the inside

Winter marches on but sensitive molluscs

know how to stave off the chill

Being nocturnal helps, but in winter

(and during heatwaves in summer), extra

evasive action is called for. The snails and

slugs sit it out by hibernating (in summer

this dormant state is known as aestivation).

Slugs often burrow into the earth, while

above ground snails seal themselves into

their shell with a thick layer of slime. Look

for garden snails hibernating in clumps,

stuck together and squeezed into cracks in

walls or under flower pots. Ben Hoare

W

here do all the snails and

slugs go in winter? With garden

snails, at least, you have a

good chance of finding out. As

molluscs, they belong to one

of the planet’s most successful

groups of animals, with far more species

described than all of the vertebrates put

together. However, these terrestrial species

have a big problem. Dry air and frosts are

killers for soft-bodied creatures.

12 BBC WILDLIFE December 2021