this post was submitted on 23 Oct 2024
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[โ€“] tetris11@lemmy.ml 12 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

they are then pooped out onto other snails? How does this life cycle work

[โ€“] egrets@lemmy.world 19 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

The larvae (possibly not quite the right word) eaten by the birds lodge in the intestinal tract near the cloaca. The eggs they produce are passed out, and snails eat the eggs.

~This comment is best read with Hans Zimmer's "The Circle of Life" playing in the background.~

[โ€“] Feathercrown@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)
[โ€“] egrets@lemmy.world 7 points 3 weeks ago

Yes, but not deliberately - I think it depends on the species, but they'll eat decomposing plant matter, faecal matter, carrion, soil, fungi. They're not too picky. If the bird guano contains tiny flatworm eggs, bad news for the snail.