Giant Land Snail
Basic Information
Genetics and Reproduction
This species is a simultaneous hermaphrodite; each individual has both testes and ovaries and is capable of producing both sperm and ova. Instances of self-fertilization are rare, occurring only in small populations. Although both snails in a mating pair can simultaneously transfer gametes to each other (bilateral mating), this is dependent on the size difference between the partners. Snails of similar size can reproduce in this way. Two snails of differing sizes mate unilaterally (one way), with the larger individual acting as a female, due to the comparative resource investment associated with the different genders.
Dietary Needs and Habits
A macrophytophagous herbivore; it eats a wide range of plant material, fruit, and vegetables, paper, and cardboard. It sometimes eats sand, very small stones, bones from carcasses, and even concrete as calcium sources for its shell. In rare instances, the snails consume each other.
Biological Cycle
Lifespan: 20,000 years
Mates every ~150 years
Scientific Name
Achatina Magnus
