How do you tell how old a snail is?

[aquaguy]

I've just read online that you count the number of stripes on it's shell. That can't be right, can it?

[tsrebel]

No. It depends on the specie and the condition they live in. Example: It is said that Norwegian Cepaeas are born with 3 whorls and grow 1 whorl each year, but they stop growing when they mature (2-3years old). After that you have no way of telling how old they are. And in captivity, they may grow more than 1 whorl in a year.

[inky]

You really do just have to keep it from birth. There's no way to tell accurately apart from size and shell colour, ie more bleached out colour is usually older due to sun bleaching.