Meet the mollusks
Snails belong to a group of animals called mollusks. Mollusks have soft
bodies with no bones. Some mollusks such as snails, clams, oysters, and
scallops have outer shells for protection. Slugs, octopuses, and squids
are mollusks that have no outer shells.
Mollusks live in most parts of the world. Land snails and slugs are two
of the mollusks that live on land.
Land Snail
The land snail is a mollusk with a shell to protect its soft body.
Giant Clam
The giant clam lives between two shells.
It can open and close its shells.
Others, such as octopuses, squid, and oysters, live in the seas and
oceans. Freshwater clams and snails live in rivers, lakes, ponds, and
streams. Wherever mollusks live, they must keep their bodies moist to
stay alive. That’s why slugs and some land snails can be found under
damp leaves or in the soil.
The tongues of slugs and land snails are covered with tiny teeth. They
use their tongues like files to eat leaves, fruit, and flowers.
Some mollusks live between two hinged shells that can open and close
like a book. These animals are called bivalves. Clams, oysters, and
scallops are bivalves. Bivalves usually keep their shells open just a
little so that they can get food. They eat tiny plants and animals that
float by in the water.
