Slow race to nowhere

Sometimes nature seems to have a sense of humor. It is hard to understand why a snail needs a shell while its close cousin, the slug, goes without.

Obviously the snail's shell serves the same purpose as a turtle's shell, as a quick and always ready retreat when danger threatens.

The slug, for some reason, has evolved without a shell. Instead, it protects itself from harm by secreting a bad-tasting gummy mucus when encountering danger from a bird, frog or other potential predator.

It may be that a shell is too cumbersome for the slug, slowing it down or preventing it from getting into tight quarters when feeding or moving from place to place. So the slug evolved a different way to protect itself.

When I found this land snail and slug on the same log, side by side, I had to laugh. The race was on when I got there, and where the finish line was, I do not know. But I can tell you this -- the slug was the faster of the two!