A tiny snail found in only one lake in the UK has been dubbed as precious as an Egyptian artefact as conservationists bid to save it. Several British zoos are setting up so-called ark populations of the glutinous snail, one of Europe’s rarest species, using creatures bred in a back garden in Ceredigion. “Beguiled by their cuteness,” conservationist Ian Hughes has made it his “life-defining” mission to protect the threatened mollusc, which was once widespread in UK waters. “There was a point where we’d got more snails in our garden than have ever been seen in the wild,” he said.
Myxas glutinosa gets its name from the gooey mantle that covers its extremely delicate, gold-flecked brown shell. It is no bigger than a fingertip, but has comically large antennae – which Hughes likens to “big floppy ears”. The snails, which feed on algae and are considered an indicator of healthy lakes and rivers, have been driven to extinction across England. Polluted water and habitat loss are largely blamed for their disappearance.
Hughes said the snails were “something to preserve and cherish like Egyptian artefacts”. In the UK, their last known refuge is Wales’ largest natural lake – Llyn Tegid – in Eryri National Park, also known as Snowdonia. Since 2014, under licence from Natural Resources Wales, Hughes has been wading into the lake to collect and study the snails. He has designed and installed small concrete shelters for them in the lake itself, and set up his own captive population in a greenhouse at his home in Llanarth.
Hughes was left wondering “will they survive an hour, will they survive a day”? Then, after four months, eggs were spotted in the tank. “Nobody had knowingly seen their eggs before we made that breakthrough,” he said. “You do these things on a wing and a prayer when you’re trying to save something that’s down to a single site and you’re trying to fathom what it needs and how to save it.
“So when something actually works – it’s one of those life-defining moments.” Rearing the snails – as well as other critically endangered invertebrates such as scarlet malachite beetles, ladybird spiders and tadpole shrimp – has become a family affair. Ian’s wife Kerry and their sons Jake, George and Ben, are also fully invested. “You’ve got to have a certain mindset to walk out into a freezing cold lake in the middle of January,” Ben, 27, explained. “But knowing that you’re helping is more than enough to make it all worth it.
“Every little thing has its place in the ecosystem and if you take a tiny little cog out of any machine it’s going to stop working”. The Hughes family is now working with the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) to relocate some of their snails to wildlife parks across England. It is seen as a first step towards restoring them back to locations in the wild over the coming years, as part of a £60m UK government-backed scheme to protect rare species. “It’s such a hugely important conservation project and such a wonderful story,” explained Samantha Eden, assistant curator at Wingham Wildlife Park in Kent, who travelled to the Hughes home to pick up 24 glutinous snails.
“We’ve got a new facility that we’ve set up for them – three beautiful ponds where we’re going to be breeding them, learning about them and understanding a little bit more about their environmental needs.” Askham Bryan Wildlife Park in York and Longleat in Wiltshire, along with Dudley and Chester zoos are also taking part in the project, with the Freshwater Habitats Trust searching for suitable water bodies where the snails could eventually be released. “We’re doing a lot of research on the snails’ ecology, their husbandry and their genetics,” explained Nicky Needham, head of species management and conservation at BIAZA. “If we can build up a really strong picture then we’re in a good position to reintroduce some of them [to the wild]. “With fingers and toes crossed I’d like to think that we could achieve that within three years’ time.” “I think it’s an amazing project and we’ll support it as much as we can,” said Simon Jones, assistant warden at Eryri National Park, who added the park was “really proud” to be home to the “unique species”.
But climate change means these species are “at an increased threat” and, with the zoos’ help, “there’s more of a chance of keeping the population alive”. For Hughes, it is “very exciting” so see fresh momentum behind saving the glutinous snail. “Having all your eggs in one basket is always a dangerous move so having more experts looking after it is really the right way to go,” he said. “For me they’re an absolute treasure – like an Egyptian artefact… as valuable as that,” he added – “and preserving them is a duty to our children and grandchildren”.
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