How Snails Navigate Food and Danger

Invasive pest snails pose a growing threat to global agriculture, yet little is known about how they sense food or avoid danger. We provide evidence of how their tentacular olfactory organs detect food cues and recognize danger, with the first electrophysiological recordings of snail tentacle responses to attractants and deterrents. Next‑generation sequencing of long tentacles of Asian tramp snails uncovered three previously uncharacterized chemoreceptor families, ionotropic glutamate receptors, G‑protein–coupled receptors and a wasabi receptor, suggesting their potential roles in modulating behavioral responses to environmental cues. Furthermore, plant‑derived repellents triggered strong avoidance, highlighting promising, eco‑friendly strategies for sustainable snail management.
For a list of snail species matched using Blast, see table Identified_Receptors_With_Expression_levels.xlsx columns H.