after almost stepping on one, i suddenly had a thought/question: how in the world are snails born?

i seriously cannot imagine little snails coming out from mummy snail's ass.. do snails lay eggs? but then again.. baby snails don't seem to have some sort of beak or smthg so how do they get out?? right.. i seem stupid but admit it..

I BET U PEOPLE ALSO DON'T KNOW HOW THOSE SLIMY BASTARDS ARE BORN OR HOW THEY REPRODUCE!

now that i mentioned it.. the question must be running through u're little brains, searching for the answer. if u knew the ans without reading on or checking it up.. don't tell me.

right. so after much reasoning and debating with my bro, i went to check it up. and low and behold..

SNAILS LAY EGGS!!! and they are hermaphroditic (having both male and female
reproductive organs). so in other words, no matter how gross it sounds, they can mate with themselves although it is preferred that they mate with another snail ( thank god). its like they have a gender problem their whole lives. sad cases... i can so imagine:

day1:
snail: ooo.. that one looks hot!! maybe i'll be male today.

day2:
same snail: now isn't that a hottie.. guess its female for me today...

gross

oh and guess what? Snails have an extensive mating ritual which involves circling around, and then riding up to each other.They touch each other with their foot, tentacles and genital organs.
This takes usually about an hour, the actual mating can easily last eight hours. haha.. so that's what's happening other than chewing on grass and moving at 0.1 m/hr. so happening!

don't the eggs look like mothballs?

suprising right? at least it suprised me. i seriously didnt know snails were so happening. i just thought they were sad creatures, once in a while, crossing paths with a foot and shoe and being squashed to death. or even better, munching on leaves their whole lives while awaiting their death, moving at speeds of like.. never. i think shit decomposes faster than they walk lah.. nono.. they don't walk.. crawl. yeah that's the word.

well, i learn smthg new everyday and now, i have a new found respect for snails. just because they have an identity crisis their whole lives and leave a trail of slimy shit where ever they go doesnt mean that they can be looked down on. but then again.. i don't see how useful they can be besides chewing up on ur favourite grass. snails rock!! =]
NOWHERE but | HERE