Snails are everywhere. The brown ones in Hong Kong are the invasive African snails (Lissachatina fulica).
The Snail’s body is soft, unprotected, and vulnerable. But it maneuvers its way across thorns and thistles without harm. Meanwhile, many humans look powerful, fully armored, and invincible, yet become a crybaby when a little bug comes close.
But this black and orange one is in a different league. Not a snail you might have seen.
Meet the Fire Snail (Platymma tweediei). This is the real-life Magcargo, a fire/rock-type Pokémon.
It is a very rare species native to only a narrow range in Malaysia such as the Cameron Highlands. It is very nearly, if not already extinct in the wild, sadly, because of deforestation and pollution.
Ironically, it is not a listed endangered species. Probably IUCN and CITES don’t even have enough research for this species.
Luckily we still have some in captivity to safeguard this species against complete extinction. Seems like they already can’t survive in their natural habitats. Sad. We need to do something.
That’s exactly why I want to show you all these rare creatures. Unlike you, many people never even have a chance to learn their existence before they are completely gone. Let’s help save all these creatures. Protect our environment. Share this if you care.
火焰蝸牛 | 馬來西亞金馬崙高原稀有生物 | 野外絕種又並非瀕危物種? | 粵語版
