How Snails Got There Shells.

Do you ever wonder where snails got their shells? They are small insects (that can be big), and hermaphrodites, which are both boys and girls. They are slimy, and only walk on one foot! This is my story about how snails got their shell.

Once upon a time, 2,000 years ago, there were no snails. Only  slugs. They were the weakest of prey. The birds could see them a mile away (meaning of speech). They had no defence at night and no shelter. They were dying out quickly. By 16 A.D, there were 5 million slugs. By 17 A.D, there were 2 million slugs. By 18 A.D, there were 5 hundred thousand slugs left. On 20 A.D, there were only a few hundred left.

There was a plant called the Curling Stalk. It was like a koru, but the roots were coming out at around the neck. They were weeds. They killed other plants to take the water and to reproduce. People decided to kill all of the Curling Stalks because they were destroying their food. They cut the head off of the plant right under the roots and left the head there to rot.

A slug called Ngata was wondering around, when suddenly, a bird was screeching above him. He looked for some shelter to hide in, and he saw a Curling Stalk head. He ate the inside and curled up inside. After a few minutes, he heard the screeching fading away. He poked out his head and saw that the coast was clear. He tried to climb out, but it was too tight. It stayed on him. He decided to walk back and show his friends. Some of them thought it was a good idea, and some of them thought it was a terrible idea. They stayed as slugs. People called the new creatures snails.