Researchers in Japan have altered the destiny of a rout of snails by changing the chirality of their shells before birth. By delicately manipulating a batch of developing embryos, the scientists ...

During a day at the beach, it’s common to see people walking up and down the shore collecting seashells. As a paleontologist ...

A snail with a shell spiraling to the right can’t mate readily with a lefty. So, changes in the single gene that controls shell direction have created new snail species, say researchers. Among the 20 ...

Symmetry is a feature of many plants, animals and even some molecules — like water. But that’s not the case with snails and their coiled shells. They are chiral — asymmetrical in such a way that they ...

Scientists have discovered why snail shells coil to the right. They say the breakthrough could also explain why our hearts are on our left and livers on our right. 'Lefty' snails are rarely found in ...

Tiny snails found on Australia's eastern coast can flicker their spiral shells like dim, blue-green light bulbs. Some snails excrete bioluminescent trails of snot or blink their muscly foot to attract ...

The snail’s shell diameter averages about 22 to 30 millimeters (.87 to 1.18 inches). Each snail’s shell has a unique combination of stripes and colors, so no two are exactly alike. These snails eat ...

The pair behind Birdsongs tackles another science topic—geometry in the animal world. Whether addressing hexagonal beehive cells or a snail's spiral shell, brisk rhymes draw attention to nature's math ...

Snails can be objects of fascination for kids playing outside. Lucky for the snails, they have their hard shells to protect them from children and predators alike. But are they born with that natural ...

In this episode of RTÉjr Radio's Let's Dive In, Julie and Phil join forces with Collie Ennis to find out how snails grow their shells. Collie Ennis, Zoologist extraordinaire and Critter Shed podcast ...

All mollusks build their own shells, whether they live in water or on land. Creatures like snails, clams, oysters and mussels use an organ called a mantle to secrete layers of calcium carbonate, which ...