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Post by saturnfly on Feb 25, 2012 1:46:35 GMT
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Post by brunni on Feb 25, 2012 9:37:42 GMT
Hi Saturnfly ! ;D ;D ;D Welcome to the forum and thanks for sharing your wonderful pics ! These guys look like Helix aspera. Take a look here : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helix_aspera |
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Post by morningcoffee on Feb 25, 2012 11:56:24 GMT
Hi Saturnfly, welcome to the forum!  Brunni is right - it looks like your snails are Helix aspersa, often just called a "garden snail" or "brown snail". Looks like your little guys are very happy and active - great photos!  |
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Post by pinkunicorn on Feb 25, 2012 12:20:06 GMT
Oooh that darker snail is lovely! Nice variation. One of mine is the opposite: paler than the rest! Mine are aspersas, too. I love the photos, especially the ones where the snails extend their head... those are always so cute! It's like they go "O hai thar!"
Need to try wheatgrass myself. Always looking for stuff to grow in my snailery...
And, welcome to the forums!
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saki114
Achatina immaculata
Posts: 327
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Post by saki114 on Feb 25, 2012 16:03:55 GMT
WELCOME TO THE FORUM!!!!! ;D  glad to have u here! I love the pictures!!! They're so clear!!! Are those h. Aspersa? I currently own 8 of that species, not to mention about 53 of the 2nd generation. ;D anyways, I wish you the BEST of luck with your snails! ill look forward to seeing u around in the threads!  |
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Post by ness on Feb 25, 2012 20:54:51 GMT
Welcome to the forum Jasmine Wow your photos are amazing! Very professional, seriously! Very healthy looking Helix aspersa there. Beautiful. I've akways liked the skin texture of this species and your photo of Ben and Mary facing each other shows this very nicely. Where abouts in NZ are you, if you don't mind me asking? |
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Post by saturnfly on Feb 25, 2012 21:46:49 GMT
Thanks all for the warm welcome! @ pinkunicorn -- Just don't do what I did, which is sprinkle the seeds everywhere lmao, I had to remove it all last night since I couldn't even see my snailies any more. -.- The smaller one, Bell, though seems to like climbing up the blades, then ends up flopping back to the bottom of the tank lol. @ ness -- I'm in the south island in a small city called Dunedin. I've been so amazed at all the species in England, especially how big some of them grow! The only ones here that grow quite large are protected and I think they mostly reside up in the west coast where a lot of land has been left undisturbed. |
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Post by pinkunicorn on Feb 25, 2012 21:47:00 GMT
I gotta ask, btw, how do you keep them so clean? Or have they been given a beauty treatment for the photos (like I sometimes do...)? My aspersas get themselves dirty as soon as I put them in the box after cleaning the shells, because they love burrowing. Or alternatively they topple over (because it takes a moment for them to attach to something after I put them back...) and get dirty, or climb on top of each other and either topple the other snail or otherwise dirty them. Mine have also worn out the "lip" of the shell, all except the youngest (and biggest) snail. Yours have beautiful, whole lips. Edit: The smaller one, Bell, though seems to like climbing up the blades, then ends up flopping back to the bottom of the tank lol. Lol, all my snails do the same... they climb on something that cannot hold their weight and then plop down. I posted some piccies of one doing this with carrot stalks in my piccy topic! |
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Post by saturnfly on Feb 25, 2012 23:06:15 GMT
I haven't had to clean them yet, but I have only had them a few weeks.  Ben always seems to be pooping, though (although he's always eating as well), so the least I do is get rid of the poop but other than that they're always pretty clean. ^^ Unfortunately I lost Mary, I'm 99% sure I put her out with the compost by mistake, so at least 'she' will have plenty of food, lol. Definitely won't be making that mistake again. She just wasn't very active and liked to hide underneath the silverbeet, so I probably didn't see her.  Going to make sure I do a headcount before getting rid of slimy old food. |
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Post by pinkunicorn on Feb 25, 2012 23:20:14 GMT
Amazing that they stay so clean on their own! Can she escape the compost and continue her life in the wild? I hope she's not trapped in for good...  Throwing snails out with food is one of my biggest snail nightmares, especially regarding my slugs, so hearing that happening makes me wince. |
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Post by saturnfly on Feb 26, 2012 5:48:03 GMT
I thought about that, and so went digging through the compost *shudder* but managed to find her amongst some lettuce. Was well happy about that! I doubt she'd even come out of her shell the entire time, she doesn't seem very active. But then it is getting colder nowadays, so maybe she's just being dormant? She does occasionally to newer areas, but then just retracts back into her shell lol. |
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Post by PennyFarthing on Feb 26, 2012 18:10:32 GMT
Those really are beautiful photos! What camera do you use?
So far I've only used my phone (a Samsung Galaxy) because my SLR has been having memory card issues.
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Post by pinkunicorn on Feb 26, 2012 20:15:51 GMT
I thought about that, and so went digging through the compost *shudder* but managed to find her amongst some lettuce. Was well happy about that! I doubt she'd even come out of her shell the entire time, she doesn't seem very active. But then it is getting colder nowadays, so maybe she's just being dormant? She does occasionally to newer areas, but then just retracts back into her shell lol. Ahh, that's nice to hear that she returned home. Is she attached to a wall or sitting on the ground? How deep is she in the shell? It could be the cold weather that is causing her to be less active. My aspersas have been a lot less active through the winter, but as it has been getting warmer they, too, have gotten more active. Also the amount of light affects. You could try gently bathing her in warmish water, being careful that the water doesn't get into her breathing hole, however. Offer her her favourite food when she comes out! |
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saki114
Achatina immaculata
Posts: 327
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Post by saki114 on Feb 26, 2012 22:18:34 GMT
My aspersas were really active this past winter huh.  they didnt even to dormant or hibernate... strange |
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Post by PennyFarthing on Feb 27, 2012 0:33:43 GMT
Hmm... Seeing as Jasmine is in New Zealand, I doubt they're hibernating. Could they be getting too warm? What's the weather like, Jasmine? By the way, welcome aboard! Those photographs are stunning and you've really captured their characters. Great stuff! |
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saki114
Achatina immaculata
Posts: 327
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Post by saki114 on Feb 27, 2012 3:19:58 GMT
Amazing that they stay so clean on their own! Can she escape the compost and continue her life in the wild? I hope she's not trapped in for good... Throwing snails out with food is one of my biggest snail nightmares, especially regarding my slugs, so hearing that happening makes me wince. I agree 100% |
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saki114
Achatina immaculata
Posts: 327
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Post by saki114 on Feb 27, 2012 3:23:41 GMT
I thought about that, and so went digging through the compost *shudder* but managed to find her amongst some lettuce. Was well happy about that! I doubt she'd even come out of her shell the entire time, she doesn't seem very active. But then it is getting colder nowadays, so maybe she's just being dormant? She does occasionally to newer areas, but then just retracts back into her shell lol. Im sooooo glad u found 'Her' !!!!! I would have a HEART ATTACK if I accidentally threw my snail out... still, im happy 4 u |
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Post by saturnfly on Feb 27, 2012 8:09:09 GMT
@ pinkunicorn - She's usually attached to the wall or the roof of their tank, but last night she came out (after some encouragement) and decided she would spend a while rasping on the cuttlebone then ate some lettuce. ^^ @ pennyfarthing - I use a a Canon 400D slr, which I don't currently have a macro lens for, so I'm pretty impressed with its abilities. It also helps to have detailed, slow-moving subjects, though! I doubt they're getting too warm since it's almost autumn here and has been getting a lot cooler, but I have a heater going most nights when it's chilly, but that's only to take the chill off the air so it's not too hot. I think if I encourage her she'll come out more often. It did take her a few days to come out of her shell when I first found her. |
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Post by PennyFarthing on Feb 27, 2012 19:42:47 GMT
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Post by ness on Feb 27, 2012 21:26:18 GMT
I haven't had to clean them yet, but I have only had them a few weeks. Ben always seems to be pooping, though (although he's always eating as well), so the least I do is get rid of the poop but other than that they're always pretty clean. ^^ Unfortunately I lost Mary, I'm 99% sure I put her out with the compost by mistake, so at least 'she' will have plenty of food, lol. Definitely won't be making that mistake again. She just wasn't very active and liked to hide underneath the silverbeet, so I probably didn't see her. Going to make sure I do a headcount before getting rid of slimy old food. Aw hun I'm sorry to read about Mary, however she'll probably live very well there. It's easy to miss seeing them at times when you're having a clear-out of old food etc.. x Re some of your earlier posts - the snails we have in the UK as pets are mainly originally from Africa (some from other places, but Africa for the vast majority). They would be unlikely to survive in the wild here, as the winter temperatures would kill them, which really is perhaps the reason why we're allowed to keep them. In countries of a permanently warmer climate where such snails have escaped or been introduced they've caused havock on the eco-systems there. The Helix aspersa is thought of as a native snail but, as with your H aspersa population, they were imported from Europe - in our case I think they were imported as food from France centuries ago. We also have wild populations of Helix pomatia, which look similar to large aspersa, but are not huge snails. They were also introduced from Europe. So really our native snails are quite small Dunedin, home of a population of Scots settlers I believe? This is a place that looks absolutely stunningly beautiful on photos, though I've never been there. One day perhaps.... (sighs whistfully). I seriously would love to spend a long time in NZ, both North and South. |
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Post by Johnnywho on Feb 28, 2012 19:25:26 GMT
Lovely snails! and brilliant quality too! You must really love them |
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Post by saturnfly on Mar 1, 2012 9:45:52 GMT
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Post by pinkunicorn on Mar 1, 2012 16:15:22 GMT
Simply amazing closeups. I'm envious!
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Post by PennyFarthing on Mar 1, 2012 18:12:04 GMT
What beauties! I love helix aspersas. Petey was lucky that it was you who happened along - he's in for a sheltered life. ;D
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jessicamartin
Achatina achatina
Jessica and Drew's Wonder Zoo.
Posts: 58
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Post by jessicamartin on Mar 6, 2012 0:11:16 GMT
Lovely photos :') They really are beautiful.
It looks like you have a good set up going on there as well.
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Throwing snails out with food is one of my biggest snail nightmares, especially regarding my slugs, so hearing that happening makes me wince.
they didnt even to dormant or hibernate... strange 
