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Sticker of Levantine field snail
Bug card No. 2607 of 4,939

Levantine field snail

Helix engaddensis
Eats: PlantsSnails, slugs and wormsGardens and meadowsNo legsNot an insect, but a bug cousin

The Levantine field snail lives in the Levant, the lands at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. It looks like a garden snail, only smaller and usually lighter in colour. It is clever about weather: it sleeps through the hot dry summer and comes out when the rain arrives.

Fun fact: this one is not an insect at all, it has no legs! But kids find it on every bug hunt, so it lives in Bug Wiki too.
Lives in
The Levant, at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea, from the coast to deserts and mountains
Top speed
about 0.03 km/h (0.02 mph)
On foot, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. Wash your hands after holding one, like after touching any wild animal.
What does it eat?
Like its garden snail cousin, it eats plants.
For real!Photo of Levantine field snail
Picture by Plegadis. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

During the dry season it hides in the ground and stays still for months.

2

It wakes up after the first rains in late autumn.

3

It is busy all through the winter, when its home is cool and wet.

4

In spring, when the rainy season ends, it goes back to sleep again.

you asked

Most asked questions about Levantine field snail

?What does the Levantine field snail do in summer?

It sleeps in the ground through the dry summer and wakes up when the first rain comes in autumn.

?Is it the same as a garden snail?

No, but they are close relatives. It is smaller and usually lighter in colour.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Helix engaddensis
Group
Snails, slugs and worms
Family
Helicidae
Classification
Gastropoda > Stylommatophora > Helicidae
Lives on
Asia

Where the facts come from

  1. Helix engaddensis (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Plegadis. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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More from the same group: Snails, slugs and worms

Also at home here: Gardens and meadows

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