As a child, I played every day in the garden in front of my house in my home town of Rheinlandpflanz. There, my interest in nature grew, as did my aspirations to become a natural scientist. I now study horticultural phytotechnology and am currently writing my bachelor’s thesis on the topic of crop protection in orchards. Since living Berlin, I have become particularly interested in improving the quality of life in cities with the help of plants. Favourite fruit: figs, passion fruit, berries, limes and oranges. Favourite vegetables: potatoes, garlic, tomatoes, pickles, lamb’s lettuce and rocket.
Snails in the garden are commonly found in full plant beds where there is moisture. But how do they actually live and what do snails do in winter when temperatures drop?
Snails are abdominal animals (Gastropoda) and, within the phylum Mollusca, are the only class of animals with terrestrial species. With or without a house, they move through our gardens in search of food and hiding places – and at a speed of 2 to 7 cm per minute. If a snail were to make its way from London to Bristol at an average speed of 4.5 cm per minute, it would take about 7 years without interruption. However, since their radius of action is only a few metres around their breeding burrow, no snail is likely to ever make the trip.
As the weather gets colder and winter approaches, snails need to find ways to survive the harsh conditions. Unlike some animals that migrate or hibernate through the winter, snails have developed some fascinating adaptations that allow them to endure the cold right where they are.
Finding Shelter
When temperatures start dropping in autumn, snails will begin looking for suitable places to shelter for the winter. Their main priorities are staying moist and avoiding freezing temperatures.
Some of the places snails may hunker down include:
- Underground burrows or holes
- Under rocks, wood piles, flowerpots or debris
- In thick vegetation or leaf litter
Land snails that live in shells will seal themselves off inside their mobile homes using a calciferous film called an epiphragm This membrane hardens into a protective barrier that prevents the snail from drying out They will remain sealed in their shell until temperatures warm up again in spring,
Slug species often bury themselves in soil or dead leaves, sometimes as deep as 12 inches underground. Their soft bodies are prone to desiccation, so a moist subterranean shelter is ideal. The earth acts as insulation to prevent freezing.
Entering Torpor
In addition to finding stable shelters, snails also alter their metabolic activities to survive cold weather in a process called torpor. Their heart rate, respiration and movement will slow down drastically to conserve energy.
- Activity decreases by about 75% compared to summer.
- Heart rate drops from 20 beats per minute to only 3-4 beats per minute.
- Oxygen consumption is only 1-2% of normal activity.
While not a true hibernation, this torpid state allows snails to endure winter using minimal resources. Their slowed physiology requires only a fraction of the energy and water they would normally need.
Weathering Cold Snaps
Snails are remarkably resilient, but extremely low temperatures can still threaten their survival. Brief cold snaps usually aren’t an issue for healthy snails in protected shelters. However, long stretches of intense cold require additional coping strategies.
Some things snails may do to endure freezing weather include:
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Gathering in groups – Huddling together helps limit exposure and retain moisture.
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Burrowing deeper – Getting further underground keeps them insulated.
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Producing glycerol – This natural antifreeze prevents ice crystals from forming in their cells and tissues.
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Entering estivation – Estivating is like extra-intense torpor that lasts through prolonged adverse conditions.
As long as their shelter remains above 14°F (-10°C), snails can usually survive using these adaptations. But lower temperatures, especially prolonged freezing, can still be fatal.
Emerging in Spring
Snails are able to sense when temperatures start warming up in springtime. This rouses them from torpor and prompts them to emerge from winter shelters. Often they will emerge on warm, wet nights in late winter or early spring to begin foraging.
Slug species buried underground dig their way back up to the surface. Land snails break out of their protective epiphragm membranes. This restores their mobility and kickstarts their metabolism back into gear.
Upon emerging, snails will be hungry from months of scarce eating. They immediately begin consuming fresh vegetation to replenish their reserves. This marks the start of the active season when snails mate, lay eggs and resume their essential role in balancing ecosystems.
Benefits of Winter Dormancy
While snails certainly have to work to survive winter, this period of inactivity also provides some key benefits:
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Saves energy – By lowering metabolism, snails conserve calories and water during scarce times.
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Avoids predators – Snails are less vulnerable when sheltered underground away from predators.
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Reduces injury risk – Entering torpor limits exposure to environmental hazards.
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Increases longevity – The dormancy period extends the total lifespan of snails.
So while winter weather brings challenges and stress for snails, their evolved adaptations allow them to persist through the cold season every year. Their torpor, shelter-seeking behaviors and physiological resilience enables the continuation of their species despite the bitter cold.
Snails in the garden: occurrence and way of life
An estimated 250 to 500 different land snail species occur in Central Europe. These live among other things in forests, on ruderal areas or just in our gardens. Very attractive are moist gardens with hiding places. Widely distributed nudibranchs include the genetted slug (Deroceras reticulatum), the Spanish way slug (Arion vulgaris), or the tiger snail (Limax maximus). If we meet snails with shells, it is probably the banded snail (Cepaea), because it is the most widespread in Germany. Larger specimens, on the other hand, could be Roman snails (Helix pomatia). These are by no means all the snails that are found in our country. You can read about other species, and what makes each special, in our article on snail species.
The everyday life of a snail is largely determined by its high water content. Therefore, it is essential to protect themselves from dehydration. Therefore, snails are mostly nocturnal, they hide during the day in dark, damp and preferably also warm places. If it becomes too warm and dry for the snails, they go into summer dormancy. Starting with dusk, they become active and search the garden for tasty plants. More details about nutrition of snails can be found in our separate article.
Half of all known snail species are hermaphrodites. Within the land snails (Stylommatophora), all are hermaphroditic, both with and without shells. This means that they form male and female sex organs – sometimes with a time lag (proterandry). From June, 4 to 6 weeks after successful reproduction, snails lay their eggs, for example, in cracks in the soil, in holes in the ground, under planter boxes, densely overgrown plants or stones. After 2 to 3 weeks, the young snails hatch from them. Most snails develop only one new generation per year.
Tip: Snails hibernate in holes in the ground, shell snails also seal the opening of their house with lime.
The average lifespan of a snail is 9 to 12 months, but theoretically they could live for several years. Early death is usually due to the large number of predators. A Roman snail in a terrarium reached a proud age of no less than 30 years.
Are there poisonous snails in the garden?
No, in the UK there have been no poisonous species found. The only species dangerous to humans, the cone snail (Conidae), lives in the tropical sea.
Where do snails live in the garden?
Pretty much any place that offers a shady, moist and preferably warm hiding place is welcome to the mollusks. Snails in the garden hide during the day in holes or burrows in the ground, under flower pots, in stone cracks or between path slabs, in compost, piles of leaves or in wood piles. Then in the evening they crawl into the beds in search of food.
Tip: In the morning you can collect snails from their damp hiding places. Boards can be placed in the bed as such hiding places. This way you know exactly where the snails are when you collect them.
When and how do snails get into the garden?
Snails have a radius of action of a few metres. Therefore, it is likely that the snails in your garden there already hatched. In spring, between February and March, the young snails hatch from their eggs. Damp, unmowed verges are sources of slugs in the garden. Possibly, however, one or the other snail flew over to you in a high arc from the neighbor’s garden. We therefore appeal to everyone to expose unwanted snails far enough from garden plants.
Tip: A British research team found that when snails are moved at least 20 metres away from where they were found, their instincts are so disturbed that they cannot find their way back. The most effective way is to relocate them outdoors to meadows or the edge of the forest.
Why do I have so many snails in the garden?
If you have a lot of snails in the garden, it is probably because they find perfect conditions for reproduction and hibernation in your home: Safe hiding places and plenty of food. Food plays a special role, because not all plants are consumed equally. We have summarised the most slug-resistant plants in this article. In addition, beer traps are still touted as a remedy for slugs. In the process, their intense smell leads to motivate many more snails to unusual efforts and attract them to the garden. In the absence of predators such as birds or hedgehogs, there are equally larger populations of snails in the garden. Therefore, it is best to provide good shelter for these animals.
How to get rid of slugs in the garden? About housing snails you can enjoy. These prefer to consume withered leaves and dead plant parts and are therefore considered beneficial insects. On the other hand, if you want to get rid of slugs and prevent them, you can find suitable information in our article on how to get rid of slugs. One way to permanently eliminate slugs is to use slug pellets.
Where Snails Go In The Winter! #shorts
FAQ
Do snails survive the winter?
In winter, you might not see any snails, as it’s too cold for them. Instead, you’ll find them hibernating in a sheltered place such as a window box. Before hibernating, many snail species seal up the openings to their shells with a mucus plug so they don’t dehydrate or get eaten by predators.
What is the lifespan of a snail?
The lifespan of a snail varies greatly depending on the species and whether it lives in the wild or captivity. In the wild, most snails live for 2 to 5 years, though some larger species can live up to 10 years.
What does it mean if you have a lot of snails in your yard?
If you have a lot of snails in the garden, it is probably because they find perfect conditions for reproduction and hibernation in your home: Safe hiding places and plenty of food. Food plays a special role, because not all plants are consumed equally. We have summarised the most slug-resistant plants in this article.