snail lifespan

[kamunyak]

So how long do snails usually live? I didnt see this question around so I thought I would ask =)

[GlitterBug]

5 to 10 years, more along the lines of 5 to 7 though.

[eric2]

it can be longer if they aviestate(sp?) like they do in the wild

[kamunyak]

wow that's a good long time =D

[coyote]

IIRC, there is a snail on record with a lifespan of 30 years. Wow!

[whodoesntlovesnails]

May 26, 2008 17:54:31 GMT coyote said:

IIRC, there is a snail on record with a lifespan of 30 years. Wow!

WOW!! do u know what kind of snail it is?

[coyote]

The lifespan of snails varies from species to species. In the wild, Achatinidae snails live around 5 to 7 years and Helix snails live about 2 to 3 years. Aquatic Apple Snails live only a year or so. Most deaths are due to predators or parasites. In captivity, their lifespan is much longer, ranging from 10 to 15 years for most species. On occasions, snails have lived beyond this lifespan, up to 30 years.[7]

from Wikipedia

Unfortunately, the link to the cited source does not have lifespan info on that particular page.

[Snail Lover.]

Wow ! I guess the better care you take of them the better chances they'll have of living longer my snails not even a year old and is already nearly average size for his species !

[fabrizio]

Some New Zealand species, in the genera Paryphantha and Powelliphanta, seem capable to reach 40, perhaps 50 years...

Despite that, they are very active predators (upon earthworms, chiefly), and their higher metabolic rate seems not to affect lifespan -they have better "reparation" biochemical strategies.on their side.

-They are even very slow to reach reproductve age (7-8, sometimes 15 years in the wild!), and are poor breeders, with a few eggs for year.

That has become possible as an evoutionary solution, due to their dwelling in insular, almost enemy-free habitat, making the "hurry for growth and reproduction" quite un-necessary.

-Moreover, are more or less long-lived most of the species that rely upon more solid shells, the size remaining the same; so, hard-shelled seashore's Osilinus, Monodonta and the like (family Trochidae) despite small size seem capable to live at least until 15; nacre is a "costly" matter to produce and mantain, a huge "investiment"; once done, the snail is more protected, and evolutionarily it became advantageous to modify their Biochemistry, making them instrinsecally more longeve.

It would be interesting to compare longevity to shell-strenght, within a same, given group; to adscertain, for example, if light-shelled Achatina reticulata is short-lived, in respect of some more hard-shelled sibling species...

[ness]

Interesting Fabrizio.

I don't know about light-shelled spaecifically, but many keepers (not all) have found that albino fulica have shell-growth problems, and often these same snails have a short life span. I wouldn't say the shells were thinner, just that they grow in a poor way - rough, uneven, slow and stunted
Some snails have short lifespans of only a few months - Subulina octana are an example of that, but they grow from hatchling to breeding age in only a few weeks! Unfortunately I can't say how long because I have so many of them I can't keep tracks on individuals. I wlould have to seperate a couple to make proper notes.

Also I remember reading a story that one snail lived for at least 45 years. It was glued to a museum board, as staff thought if was an empty shell. there it stayed for many years.. One day it woke up, and has since been cared for there by staff. I'm not sure of the species.

It is said that snails that go through their natural hibernation patterns often live longer than members of the same species who are kept in conditions where they do not hibernate. However - not all snails make it through hibernation....

[julie]

I have just joined this group. I have kept Acatina Fulica for over 12 years. The first pair were given to us by staff at my sons' nursery. My younger son, then 2 and a half had "fallen in love" with the giant snails. The original pair produced numerous offspring, most of which wer re-homed with other snail fans. We kept about half a dozen at any one time. I used them as a teaching resource to take part in school sessions with infant classes about mini-beasts.

We still have one of the original snails, now about 13 years old. The snail has hibernated for part of most winters (this does seem to prolong their lifespan). Not quite a record, but a venerable old snail.

[pinkunicorn]

Hi and welcome! You've come to the right place as a snail-lover!

I'm curious, how big are your granny snails now?

[elegans]

I've been wondering if you can tell a snail's age by how many turns it has on its shell?

[muddydragon]

no. Growth rate is affected by many things including heat and nutrition. most snails hatch with serveral whorls already and tend to stop/slow down growing after ~2years. It's impossible to ell the age purely from the number of whorls or size of the snail.

[elegans]

Huh. I didn't know that. Thanks for the quick reply.

I asked because my snail is fairly whorly but is very small. I hope he's young, so I can have a long time with him.

[muddydragon]

(with the growth rate cessation age i was referring to Achatina and Archachatina it is not doubt different in different species).

Some species have many more whorls than others what species is he?

[elegans]

I found him roving in a bag of salad greens, so I don't know exactly, but he looks most similar to the pictures of Helix aspersa I found online.

[muddydragon]

if he's H. aspera and very small he probably is young. If you can upload a picture there's a good chance someone on here can confirm your ID and give some idea of if he's young or not

[elegans]

I did more research myself, and found out my variety is Acusta despecta, local to where I live and which are small even at adult size. I guess I'll have to make the most of my time with Humphrey.

[graemepryce]

I saw a video about Land Snails somewhere on youtube and I wish I had saved it now! It said that the current information on snails lifespans is based on those kept in captivation and that the scientists studying them treat them somewhat differently than people who are keeping them as pets so there could be a wide discrepancy in the numbers. One researcher also suggested that in the wild it is impossible to exactly know without catching and killing the snail ( which they don't do! ) but that they may be like some molluscs that live under the sea and may basically be able to continually conserve enough energy to stay alive as long as they are not eaten, diseased, infected with parasites or deprived of natural habitat. They went on to say that in theory this could mean that there are snails out there much, much older than 30 years. Snails have a tendancy to hide and be in inaccessable places so maybe we haven't discovered the oldest and biggest ones yet? I will try to find the video and link it soon!