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The Giant African Land Snail is one of the largest terrestrial gastropods. Giant African Land Snails, referred to as G.A.L.S. for short, are native molluscs to middle and the south of Africa. Their Latin name is Achatinidae. The care for these animals is relatively easy and thus make great pets.
When fed on the correct diet and kept in appropriate conditions, the average shell of a G.A.L.S. can grow between 15cm - 18cm in length, and in exceptional cases, the shell can grow to be 30cm. G.A.L.S. have an average lifespan of about 5-7 years. With the right set up and food, some of them have been known to live up to 10 years. There are different types of G.A.L.S. They not only vary in colours & sizes but most importantly they require to be kept at different temperatures & humidity. For more information on the G.A.L.S. please visit:
TYPES OF G.A.L.S. |
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ARCHACHATINA MARGINATA SUTURALIS eating - Special Thanks to : Rod Watson Dragonfish66 Reptiles & Exotics
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G.A.L.S are omnivores. They eat varies types of fruit & vegetables, meat & even bones! G.A.L.S can’t bite you or in any way harm you as their teeth are too small.
Snails have thousands of teeth, which are arranged in rows on a chitinous ribbon and together form the Radula. The Radula is used to scrape and grind off pieces of their food. We call this rasping. |
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G.A.L.S. are mostly active during the night, they explore and eat in the safety of the darkness. During the day they remain dormant, often buried beneath the ground or hiding under something to stay safe from predators & to keep moist.
G.A.L.S. are said not to be social animals, but many keepers who keep them in groups notice that they like to interact with each other. When keeping them as pets it is perfectly fine to keep them in groups, couples or lone. Snails of the same species should only be kept together, as different species require different perimeters. Snail's kept solo will produce less eggs than ones kept with partners. |
ARCHACHATINA MARGINATA OVUM - Special Thanks to : Rod Watson Dragonfish66 Reptiles & Exotics
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ACHATINA FULICA (JADATZI) BABY - Special Thanks to : Rod Watson Dragonfish66 Reptiles & Exotics
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Like most snail species, G.A.L.S. are hermaphrodites, meaning that they possess both male & female reproductive organs, and they also can self-fertilise.
Meaning that you can still get fertilised eggs from 1 snail. As G.A.L.S. are both able to fertilise each other, a single mating can result in 100 to 300 eggs being laid by each snail. In exceptional cases it can be up to 500 eggs. Caring for eggs & hatchlings is relatively simple, but only well informed breeders should hatch G.A.L.S. |
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Snails internal organs are positioned inside of their shell. Their body is a strong muscle that allows them to move through its contractions. If you watch a snail crawl up a transparent surface such as glass, you will be able to see these contractions ripple through his body.
Snails like other invertebrates do not have a spinal cord nor one single brain. Instead they have a set of ganglia (groupings of neurons) that distribute the control of the various parts of the snail. These very small cerebral ganglia contain 4000-100000 individual cells often called neurons. Although this is a rudimentary brain, snails have more ability for associative thinking than most people give them credit for. Snails are able to learn. |
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During the months that are too cold or too hot & dry for the snails, some G.A.L.S. will hibernate inside of their shell forming a membrane wall at the entrance of their shell.
While hibernating, they can slow down their metabolism, so they don’t need to eat or move during that period. They can remain inside of the shell for several months before they emerge again. |
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