I was in California last week visiting Jeff, and came upon a rout* of snails on a rainy walk home. There were so many of them that I had to watch every step I took so as not to step on them. I have never encountered snails in the streets before, so I was curious to learn more about how they got there. I found the following from an article at sfgate.com:
“…the local common garden snail is the European brown -- Helix aspersa. They were imported here in the early 1850s by a Frenchman who intended to sell them as food, but the market here during the Gold Rush was too unsophisticated for snails. He ended up dumping some snails, and another collection escaped. Snails are hermaphroditic, so of course they reproduced like crazy.”
They’ve become real pests, since they feed on people’s gardens. Quite entertaining for this newcomer, though. We had a good time touching their tentacles, and watching them retract, shown here.
I also learned here that they're typically gone by this time of year, but with all the rain the Bay Area has been having, the snails are still out:
"Snails and slugs typically hibernate in topsoil during very cold weather. And when conditions are hot and dry, snails retreat into their shells, seal themselves off and become inactive. But with this year's plentiful rains and mild winter temperatures, snails and slugs haven't had much downtime."
Yes, these are the same snails that are used for escargot. If you go to the first link above, you’ll see how you can harvest your own snails for dinner. No thanks.
*Yes, it is too called a “rout of snails”. I looked it up. I also learned that a snail nursery is called an escargatoire. So there.
The only thing cooler than snails is worms. WOOOOOOORRRRRMMMMSSSSS!
Posted by: Jeff Atwood | June 24, 2005 at 02:38 PM