The Largest Snail in the World Can Grow as Long as a Human Arm

This giant snail is six times the size of a garden snail: it can even grow as long as a human arm from hand to elbow!

The Giant African Land Snail is the largest among all land snails in the world (the common name actually refers to three giant species in the family Achatinidae: Achatina achatina, Archachatina marginata and Lissachatina fulica).

Even after reaching adulthood, these snails will never stop growing. Although their growth may slow down a bit after a certain age, they will keep getting bigger nonetheless, until they die. Full-grown adults can usually reach 2.8 inches (7 cm) in diameter and 7.9 inches (20 cm) in length. Some grow even bigger

The largest recorded specimen was collected on a snail safari in Sierra Leone in 1976. When fully extended, it measured 1 feet and 3.5 inches (39.3 cm), with a shell length of 10.75 inches (27.3 cm). It was called Gee Geronimo and The Guinness Book of Records listed it as the largest snail on Earth. However, its owner got divorced after their house got so full of snails that they had some even under their bed in a bucket.

Each snail can live up to 10 years, and they can reproduce pretty quickly. Like most land snails, Giant African Land Snails are hermaphrodites and adults lay as much as 1200 eggs a year.

The Largest Snail in the World Can Grow as Long as a Human Arm

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