Sea snails with a cone-shaped shell and a strong muscular foot that clamps them to rocks on the shore. At high tide they wander and graze algae with a tongue of iron-hardened teeth, then follow their own mucus trail back to their favourite spot.
Quick answers
What is it?Mollusc
Carnivore?No, herbivore
Dangerous?No
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Day & night
Hibernates?No
Kept as a pet?No
Do people eat it?In places
Eaten in Portugal (lapas) and Asturias in Spain; in Ireland it was famine food, so tough it had to be boiled or roasted thoroughly.
At a glance
Found inOceans
HabitatCoast
ColoursGrey, Brown
SizeTiny
LengthCommon limpet up to about 6 cm
LegsNone
Covered inShell
Lives incolonies
Lives for10–20 years
Lays eggs
In the wild
- What it eats
- Algae scraped off rocks with its radula, a tongue with over 100 rows of teeth.
Did you know
Its teeth are the strongest natural material known, stronger than spider silk.
Over time its shell wears a shallow hollow, a "homescar", into the rock where it rests.
Worn teeth are thrown away as new ones grow, about one new row every 47 hours.
Often confused with
On these lists
Sources
Last reviewed
Play
Could you have guessed it?
A photo, a few hints, one guess. Same 438 animals.
