Most gastropods live in the sea, but you can find snails that live on land, rivers, and seas. The phylum and order of a snail are Mollusk and Plumonata, respectively.
Being a Mollusk basically means that the animal does not have any bones or a skeleton. Snails have a soft body that leaves a trail of slime when they move. As snails do not have any bone in their body to protect them, they use this calcium carbonate shell for protection and shelter instead.
Their shells are external and often big enough for them to retract inside if needed. Slugs are very close relatives of snails, which is why they share a lot of the same features of snails we just talked about.
Like snails, slugs are also gastropods that belong to the Mollusk phylum and Pulmonata order. They move the same way snails do, and their bodies are boneless as well. Their main striking physical feature is that slugs do not have those big spiral external shells snails always do. They may have internal shells or a very small outer shell, but they cannot retract fully inside them, which snails can do.
Slugs can very commonly be found in gardens, as they are very drawn to places with food and moisture. If they are left unchecked, slugs can actually cause serious harm to your garden and trees. As you can already guess, the most obvious way slugs differ from snails is that they do not have an external shell. Some slugs do, but it is tiny and nowhere near large enough for them to use as protection and retract into. If you let go of the shell for a minute, the bodies of these two animals are actually quite the same.
The gastropods commonly referred to as snails and slugs belong to the group of soft-bodied animals referred to as mollusks which also includes oysters, octopus, cuttlefish, clams and squid. There are about 60, species of snails and slugs with varying shades of color. Both Slugs and snails thrive in damp soil or plant debris, and feed on living and decomposing plant material, but they prefer young, tender plant growth.
Both slugs and snails lay eggs in the spring and summer. They put the eggs in damp, protected places. Snails cover their eggs with soil. Snail and slug eggs are generally coated with a slimy substance that is slightly gummy.
The eggs hatch in a few days. Snails and slugs can live for several years both in the wild and in captivity. Slugs and snails share many common features and characteristics, however, the main difference between them is that snail carry a spiral shell on its back around with it and can withdraw its body into it when feeling threatened.
Slugs on the other hand have no shell at all or more commonly the shell is reduced to a single flattish internal plate hidden inside the body. Slug is a common name that is commonly used to describe any gastropod mollusk that does not possess a shell or has a shell that is reduced or the shell it possess is a small internal shell.
Slugs generally secrete a layer of mucus for protection against predators. Comparison chart Differences — Similarities —. Follow Share Cite Authors. Share this comparison: If you read this far, you should follow us: "Slug vs Snail. Comments: Slug vs Snail.
Related Comparisons. Contribute to Diffen Edit or create new comparisons in your area of expertise. Log in ». Terms of use Privacy policy. Slug is a common name that is normally applied to any gastropod mollusk that lacks a shell, has a very reduced shell, or has a small internal shell.
Snail is a common name for almost all gastropod mollusks that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in a general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. Coiled external shell, large enough for animal to retract into completely.
Depends upon the species; common snail moves at about 1 millimeter per second.
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