Examples of animals that eat snails include badgers, blackbirds, turtles, crows, and foxes.
Snails are a delicacy that has been eaten for centuries.
It is therefore not surprising that many animals have developed a taste for snails.
They have no natural predators, can travel up to 25 meters per day, and are edible.
Snails are also a perfect food for some animals that don’t normally eat meat.
Examples of Animals that Eat Snails
Examples of Animals that Eat Snails
Name
Badgers eat snails.
Snails are molluscs, which means they have soft bodies and no bones.
They also produce slime to avoid predators such as badgers.
Badgers dig holes in the ground called sets for their families of up to 13 members.
The female gives birth there every spring, usually four or five babies at a time.
Badgers are omnivores, meaning they eat meat and plants.
They mainly eat insects, worms, fruit and vegetables, but will also prey on small mammals such as rabbits and birds.
Snails form a very small part of their diet.
Scientific NameTurdus merulaType of AnimalBirdRangeEurope, North Africa, India, and southern ChinaDietOmnivore
Blackbirds are destructive to snails.
Some examples include the blackbird, the red-winged blackbird and the thrush which are all known to eat or feed on land-dwelling molluscs, especially slugs.
Snail shells are crushed between their strong beaks then they extract the soft body.
The birds often hunt for snails by probing the ground with their beaks until they find a snail hiding under leaves or in the soil.
Scientific NameAnguis fragilisType of AnimalAnnelidsRangewestern EuropeDietCarnivore
Some of the animals that eat snails are blind worms.
Snails are an excellent source of protein and minerals for these animals.
Blindworms in particular eat large numbers of snails, which helps keep snail populations in check.
By eating snails, these animals help maintain balance within their ecosystems.
4. Box Turtle
Scientific NameTerrapene Type of AnimalReptileRange United StatesDietOmnivore
The box turtle is a terrestrial creature that feeds mainly on snails and other small invertebrates.
They have a hard shell that helps protect them from predators, and they can live for up to 100 years.
Box turtles are found in the eastern United States and southeastern Canada.
Scientific Name Chilopoda Animal Type Chilopoda Global Variation Diet Carnivore
Centipedes are carnivores that eat other animals to survive.
These creatures have a long body, usually up to 12 inches that has many segments and they move very quickly by using one pair of legs for each segment.
The head has powerful fangs that inject poison into the body of the prey causing paralysis and death within minutes (because their digestive systems are very acidic).
Centipedes generally eat insects, but have also been known to feast on earthworms, lizards and other small animals.
Corvws Scientific Name Type of AnimalBirdRangeWorldwideDeietOmnivore
Crows, for example, are very good at spotting snails.
In the tropical rainforest there is a bird called the Bananaquit which eats insects and fruit but also loves to eat land snails.
They usually find their prey by picking around leaf litter on the forest floor.
Scientific NameLampyridaeType of AnimalInsectDietRange Global Isolator
Fireflies eat snails, which is a good thing because they help control the snail population.
Scientific NameVulpesType of AnimalMotherRangeWorldwideDietOmnivore
A fox eats snails and other invertebrates.
Scientific NameAnuraType of AnimalReptileGlobal RangeDietCarnivore
Frogs are known to be one of the most common animals that eat snails.
They can also use their sticky tongues for other things, such as catching insects or even removing snail shells from a plant.
Earth bugs
Earth bugs
Name
Ground beetles are predators that eat snails and other small invertebrates.
They are often found near water where they can easily catch their prey.
Ground beetles come in many different colors, but most are black or brown.
These insects have a hard exoskeleton that helps protect them from predators.
Ground beetles are beneficial to gardeners because they help keep other pests under control.
Name
Harvestmen are not true spiders, but arachnids.
They have eight legs like a spider, but their body is different.
Harvestmen eat mainly snails and insects.
Scientific NameErinaceinaeType of AnimalMammalRangeEurope, Asia, Africa and New ZealandDietOmnivore
Hedgehogs are generally known for their ability to catch and devour a wide range of prey, including earthworms, insects such as beetles and caterpillars, and even small birds.
The common or European hedgehog is often found in gardens where snails abound.
Scientific NameMuscidaeAnimalTypeInsectRangeEurope, Asia, and non-tropical regions of AfricaDietOmnivore
Horn flies are a type of fly that feeds on the blood of cattle, horses and other mammals.
Horn flies can be controlled with insecticides, but some animals can also eat them.
Birds such as swallows and blackbirds eat horn flies, as do some lizards, frogs and toads.
Scientific NameLimax Maximum Species Gastropods AnimalsRange south and east AustraliaDietCarnivore
Leopard Slugs are one of the most common snail eaters.
They are large slugs with a pattern of brown and black spots on their body.
They are found in gardens and woodlands throughout the United States.
Scientific NameLacertilia Type of AnimalReptileWorld RangeDietCarnivorous
There are many different types of lizards that eat snails.
Some of the most common include the anole, the gecko, and the iguana.
These lizards have specially adapted mouths that allow them to pry open snail shells and extract the soft body inside.
They usually do not eat the shell itself.
Scientific NameAnimalTypeMotherRangeWorldwideDietOmnivore
Mice are one of the animals that eat snails.
They can eat them because they have sharp teeth that can pierce snail shells.
Mice usually eat the snail meat, but will also eat the snail shell if no other food is available.
Snail shells provide important nutrients to mice, such as calcium and phosphorus.
Mice that eat snail shells are usually healthier than mice that don’t.
Snail shells also help protect the mice from predators.
Scientific NameTalpidaeType of AnimalMammalWorld RangeDietCarnivore
Moles eat large amounts of earthworms and snails.
They locate their prey by feeling the vibrations they create as they move underground.
Scientific NamePleurodelinaeType of AnimalRangeRange North America, Europe, Asia and North AfricaDietCarnivore
They have long, slimy bodies and flat heads that are well adapted to eating slugs, snails and even other lizards.
They hunt in the water during the day but usually live on land in moist woodlands near ponds or rivers.
The smooth skin on their backs helps them swim through the water.
On land, their skin secretes a sticky slime to help them climb up vertical surfaces or cling to rocks so they don’t fall into the water.
Scientific NameDidelphidaeType of AnimalMammalRange United States, Mexico, Central America, South America and CanadaDietOmnivore
The opossum is a small, grey-white marsupial from North America.
Opossums are omnivores and eat a wide variety of things, including fruits, vegetables, insects, spiders, and snails.
One study found that opossums eat an average of 23 snails a day.
This may not seem like much, but it can add up over time.
Opossums are an important part of the ecosystem and help keep snail populations in check.
Scientific Name RattusType of AnimalMotherRangeWorldwideDietOmnivore
There are many different types of snails available, however, so it’s important for people with pet rats or other pets to know which ones they can feed their creatures if they want them to avoid snail poisoning.
Roman snails
Roman snails
Scientific NameHelix pomatia Animal Type Gastropod Range from eastern, western, eastern, northern, and southern EuropeDietHerbivore
Roman snails are known to be hardy as they can withstand very cold temperatures.
The shell of a Roman Snail is brown and the snail itself varies between shades of dark purple, pink or blue with white spots around its body.
Scientific Name Urodela Type of Animal Range North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Central America Diet Carnivore
Salamanders are small lizards that live on land.
Some salamanders will eat anything they come across while others only eat certain things such as fruit or leaves.
One type of salamander known as the red spotted lizard prefers to hunt for its food at night so it can easily avoid predators.
These little amphibians will eat any type of snail they can find, including the invasive apple snails that have been causing problems in many parts of the world.
Scientific NameSoricidaeAnimalTypeMotherRangeNorth AmericaDietCarnivore
Whistles are a type of mammal in the Soricidae family.
Whistles are small, with many different species that vary greatly in size from between 17mm and 38cm in length.
They have slender bodies with very sharp teeth, but unlike rodents they do not have elongated incisors.
Their tails vary from one to five centimeters in length and are always covered in black hair.
These mammals are insectivores and their diet includes a variety of different insects, including snails.
Scientific Name Serpentes Type of Animal Reptile Global Range Diet Carnivorous
Snakes are one of the main predators of snails.
There are many different species of snakes that eat snails, including the king cobra, the black mamba, and the bush master.
Scientific NamePasser Animal TypeBirdRange United StatesDietOmnivore
Songbirds mainly eat the soft parts of the snail such as the body and tentacles.
They also eat snail eggs.
Some of the species of songbirds that prey on snails are the American robin, dark-eyed junco, and the house sparrow.
Name
Some people believe that the toxins in snail slime can be toxic to these predators, but there is little scientific evidence to support this claim.
Frogs in particular seem to love eating snails and will go out of their way to find them.
Scientific NameMeleagris gallopavo Animal TypeBirdRange United StatesDietOmnivore
Snails are a popular target for snail eaters.
Wild turkeys love to feast on wildflowers, slugs and smaller insect species as well as mice or other small mice – but they will also go after larger prey items like this too.
In fact, their main staple is acorns from oak trees which provide protein and fat, but when these are in short supply, turkeys will look for other food sources.
This includes snails.
Snails are towards the bottom of the food chain.
They are a slow, easy target for many small mammals, reptiles and birds.
Although they have a hard shell to help protect them from predators, many with long beaks and claws can get around the defenses to get their daily meal!
Living in South Africa I have had the pleasure of seeing most of these animals up close and personal.