Free The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey Page B

they’ve been crafted by the very finest of artisans. They are formed inside the body of the snail over the course of a week and can be as much as one-third the length of the shell. The dart’s shaft is hollow and circular and, depending on species, may have four finlike blades, which are sometimes flanged; one end is harpoon sharp, while the other end comes to a flair with a corona-like base.
Some species produce a new dart for each mating; others withdraw and reuse them in successive matings. A particular species might keep just one dart in stock; others have a “pouch” with a pair or more. In Practical Biology, T. H. Huxley comments on these Cupid’s darts: “In the spiculum amoris . . . we have a structure, almost without parallel in the whole animal kingdom.”
The trauma of being hit by a dart, however, can sometimes put a snail off its courtship. Darts are not technically necessary for mating, and less than a third of all snail species are dart shooters. It is thought that the dart transmits a slime containing special pheromones that may improve the safe storage of the partner’s sperm.
A romantic encounter between a pair of snails can take up to seven hours from start to finish and involves three phases. First there is the lengthy courtship, in which the snails draw slowly closer, often circling each other, smooching, and exchanging tentacle touches. If they find they are not quite to each other’s liking, they may end their romance, but if things are proceeding well, then in some species, dart shooting occurs.
In the second phase, the snails embrace in a spiral direction and mate. Some species of snails simultaneously swap sperm, while others will be male or female at a particular mating and then reverse their roles the next time. Apparently being a hermaphrodite is not always easy; if two snails of a species that take on gender roles want to be the same gender simultaneously, a conflict may occur. Regardless of the method, and assuming all goes well, sperm is exchanged either internally or externally; depending on the snail species, it may be offered in elaborately designed and decorated packages called spermatophores.
Consummation is followed by the last phase, resting; the snails, still quite near each other, both withdraw into their shells and remain immobile, sometimes for several hours. Regardless of the mating methods of a particular species, fertilization occurs internally, after the lovers have parted.
In Highsmith’s story “The Snail-Watcher,” I could now understand why Mr. Knoppert’s wife “squirmed with embarrassment” when he “narrated snail biology to fascinated, more often shocked friends and guests.” Even Durrell is so surprised by what he sees that he consults his mentor, the biologist and zoologist Theodore Stephanides. Durrell’s brother Lawrence, previously bored with discussions of natural history, suddenly becomes quite interested:
“Good God,” cried Larry. “I think it’s unfair. All those damned slimy things wandering about seducing each other like mad all over the bushes, and having the pleasures of both sensations. Why couldn’t such a gift be given to the human race? That’s what I want to know.”
“Aha, yes. But then you would have to lay eggs,” Theodore pointed out.
“True,” said Larry, “but what a marvellous way of getting out of cocktail parties—‘I’m terribly sorry I can’t come,’ you would say. ‘I’ve got to sit on my eggs.’”
Theodore gave a little snort of laughter.
“But snails don’t sit on their eggs,” he explained. “They bury them in damp earth and leave them.”
“The ideal way of bringing up a family,” said Mother, unexpectedly but with immense conviction. “I wish I’d been able to bury you all in some damp earth and leave you.”
Gerald’s mother may have been impressed with another perk of snail parenting: a snail can keep its partner’s sperm alive for several months—even up to several years, if