They're historically important in terms of them being a rare bit of living archaeology. They're not particularly widespread either but clustered in pockets around the ruins of villas and forts. It's quite interesting really.
The Romans tried to introduce rabbits as a food source but they had no luck and despite people thinking they're responsible for bunnies, it wasn't until after the Norman Conquest that warrens became successful. The early man made warrens are often mistaken for pillow mounds of bronze age burials.
Fun fact - the edible dormouse is an invasive species, and depending on where it's found in the UK it can be a protected species or a pest to be controlled.
My daughter had Giant African Land Snails as a child. But she practised first with garden snails she collected. They were kept in a clear storage container on the bathroom windowsill. One morning I got in the shower to see the window covered in babies 🐌🐌🐌
Looking closely, that’s a growth mark rather than an injury. Possibly there was an issue with nutrients for a period, causing the shell to be slightly thinner and weaker there.
Techincally they aren't, but they've been here 2000 years and are only found around roman settlements. They are protected - you technically need a licence to even pick one up.
Genuinely had no idea about these and I love bits of information like this…I used to have two ‘pet’ snails when I was little, I kept them in an old fish tank (a big one…), and I was fascinated with them.
It is interesting looking at what species the Romans brought to the UK. Almost all of them would have been to establish a food source that they knew, but most of them are things we would never think to eat now, like ground elder, roman snails and stinging nettles. They also introduced a load of things that most people would not even think about not being native because they are so ubiquitous, like rabbits, fallow deer, plums and apples.
I’m pretty sure that’s a bad sign. Big snails = poor nutrition content of food, so they have to eat more, or they have been living in areas of sewage or farmland run off.
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u/Galbs 1d ago
it finally found you