A snail is a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name snail is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have a coiled shell that is large enough for the animal to retract completely into. When the word "snail" is used in this most general sense, it includes not just land snails but also numerous species of sea snails and freshwater snails. Gastropods that naturally lack a shell, or have only an internal shell, are mostly called slugs, and land snails that have only a very small shell are often called semi-slugs.
A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer usually created by an animal or organism that lives in the sea. Most seashells are made by mollusks, such as snails, clams, and oysters to protect their soft insides. Empty seashells are often found washed up on beaches by beachcombers. The shells are empty because the animal has died and the soft parts have decomposed or been eaten by another animal.
Gastropods, commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda.
Sea slug is a common name for some marine invertebrates with varying levels of resemblance to terrestrial slugs. Most creatures known as sea slugs are gastropods, i.e. they are sea snails that, over evolutionary time, have either entirely lost their shells or have seemingly lost their shells due to having a significantly reduced or internal shell. The name "sea slug" is often applied to nudibranchs and a paraphyletic set of other marine gastropods without apparent shells.
Heterobranchia, the heterobranchs, is a taxonomic clade of snails and slugs, which includes marine, aquatic and terrestrial gastropod mollusks.
A siphon is an anatomical structure which is part of the body of aquatic molluscs in three classes: Gastropoda, Bivalvia and Cephalopoda.
Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the absence of a visible shell.
Crepidula fornicata is a species of medium-sized sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Calyptraeidae, the slipper snails and cup and saucer snails. It has many common names, including common slipper shell, common Atlantic slippersnail, boat shell, quarterdeck shell, fornicating slipper snail, Atlantic slipper limpet and it is in Britain as the "common slipper limpet".
Architectonicidae, common name the staircase shells or sundials, are a family of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the informal group "Lower Heterobranchia" of the clade Heterobranchia.
Conus geographus, popularly called the geography cone or the geographer cone, is a species of predatory cone snail. It lives in reefs of the tropical Indo-Pacific, and hunts small fish. While all cone snails hunt and kill prey using venom, the venom of Conus geographus is potent enough to kill humans.
Architectonica is a genus of sea snails in the family Architectonicidae.
Cassis cornuta, common name the horned helmet, is a species of extremely large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Cassidae, the helmet shells and their allies.
Conus clarus, common name the glossy cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.
Conasprella rutila, common name the burnished cone, is a rare species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.
Neverita duplicata, common name the shark eye, is a species of predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Naticidae, the moon snails.
Megastraea undosa, common name the wavy turban snail, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Turbinidae, the turban snails. This species is native to the coast of California.
Architectonica maxima, common name giant sundial, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Architectonicidae, which are known as the staircase shells or sundials.
Architectonica perdix, common name the partridge sundial, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Architectonicidae, the sundials.
Fluxinella trochiformis, common name the sundial top shell, is a species of extremely small deep water sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Seguenziidae.
Architectonica gualtierii is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Architectonicidae, which are known as the staircase shells or sundials.
