Shell Shocked: A Snail's Repair Job

While I'm staying with a friend for a break I noticed she seemed to have a lot of snails in her garden.

They mostly come out at dusk so you have to be very careful not to step on them. I can't say I'm an avid fan of snails, but I wouldn't harm one.

Unfortunately, one got damaged with the lawnmower and suffered a split in its shell. I can remember years ago, Linda McCartney, photographer, animal rights campaigner, author, musician, vegetarian, and least important, married to Paul McCartney once glued a snail's shell back together after it got damaged. Linda perhaps wouldn't have known back then that snail's can repair their own shells, although it does depend on how bad the damage is. Snails store calcium in their bodies, which they then use to patch the shell up.

Anyway, I placed the snail in a flower pot out of harm's way and waited for about half an hour to see what happened. On my return, I was pleasantly surprised to find the snail had moved to the decking and had indeed repaired itself. I could only just see the join! How clever is that!

This is my entry to the #monomad contest.