Jeepers, Creepers

[nene]

I recently got a large golden inca snail and I always thought that snails didn't have eyes but when I drop sinking wafers in for her she goes right to them. If they have eyes, where exactly are they?

 

[Graeme]

On the end of ther anteners.



Graeme.

 

[Alien Anna]

Yes, they have eyes, plus a better sense of smell and taste than you or I have. Their antennae effectively "taste" the water.

 

[Graeme]

So where's the Eye's lol

 

[freshmike]

lol....snails are slippery!

 

[crimsontsavo]

Me being all professional here. They eyes are on the tips of those wiggly things..
If you look closely, you can see little black dots.

 

[nene]

She is the first snail I have ever had and it amazes me how interactive she is. I guess I just always thought snails were a really primtive lifeform that just functioned in survival mode. (Like some people I know) Thanks for the info! I have more respect for my snail now. They are actually very interesting creatures.

 

[Alien Anna]

She is the first snail I have ever had and it amazes me how interactive she is. I guess I just always thought snails were a really primtive lifeform that just functioned in survival mode. (Like some people I know) Thanks for the info! I have more respect for my snail now. They are actually very interesting creatures.

When you consider that snails are in the same family as octopuses and squids - thought to be the most intelligent invertebrates, it's hardly surprising. Octopuses and snails have been taught to run mazes so they're not as daft as people think.

Generally, sedentary molluscs (such as bivalves) have no need for much intelligence - they just open their shells and suck in their dinner and if their sensors detect a predator, they snap shut. It's pretty well automatic. But a mobile mollusc, such as a freshwater snail, octopus or squid has to detect their prey and go after it. They have to have good senses and they have to have good direction control. They also need to find mates (bivalves just spray sperm into the water and it lands where it lands) and find suitable places to lay their eggs.

If it exists, a relative of the snail, the giant squid, could be as intelligent as any mammalian predator. Which might be why we've never caught one alive!