Violet snails
Last week we talked about the buoy barnacle and how it makes its own float, so this week I wanted to talk about the violet snails, another animal that makes its own float. Violet snails, or purple snails, (Janthina janthina) are brilliant creatures with beautiful purple shells that often have bubbles attached to them. These bubbles function as a raft or a float for the snails. They create their bubble floats by trapping air bubbles in their bodies, then wrapping the air bubbles in sticky mucus. Recently beached violet snails can often be seen with their floats still attached because the bubbles have this mucus covering. Violet snails eat many surface animals including By-the-wind Sailors, Blue Buttons, and Portuguese Man-o-Wars!
Happy beach walking!
Ari Puentes
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