Japan announces new discovery of strange snail species

On October 3, researcher Masaki Hoso of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science announced a new discovery about a strange snail species in Okinawa, which can shed its tail to escape predators.

Some animals such as lizards, crabs and worms can cut off part of their body to escape predators, but this is the first time this defense mechanism has been discovered in snails.

Mr. Hoso said he did not detect this self-defense action in snails living in areas where snakes do not live. He believes this is a special case that evolved from an instinctive need to deal with snakes.

The Satsuma caliginosa snail can detach its tail when it encounters a snake. (Source: Live Science)

Hoso studied the survival rate of a species of snail called Isshikimaimai (Latin name Satsuma caliginosa) found in Yaeyama, Ishigaki and Iriomote, when exposed to the snail-eating Iwasaki snake. The results showed that about 60% of the snails survived, and about 45% of the snails broke off their tails when bitten by the snakes before hiding in their shells. The broken tails later grew back.

For comparison, Mr. Hoso conducted a similar experiment with snails found on Yonaguni Island, about 120km from Iwasaki and where there are no snail-eating snakes. The result was that almost all of these snails were eaten by snakes.

The study also found that tail abduction occurred more frequently in juvenile snails whose shells were not fully developed, and less frequently in adults. Hoso believes that the snails' defense mechanism shifts to relying on their shells once they have hardened.

Mr. Satoshi Chiba - professor of Tohoku University, expert in evolutionary ecology, said that scientists have not studied the lizard-like defense mechanism in snails because they thought that the shell protected them. Therefore, this is a very interesting and meaningful study. It shows that the characteristic of animals cutting off part of their body to escape enemies has developed from special conditions, in which snails evolved to deal with predators./.

(According to VNA) - VT