SNAILS from southern Europe have been spotted in Nottinghamshire for the first time – and they could have got here on the train.
Tim Sexton, of the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, was on the lookout for a rare spider when he stumbled across his new shelled friend – a Mediterranean girdled snail – at Attenborough Nature Reserve.
The trust is asking Notts residents to help them learn more about the 24th different snail found at Attenborough by sending them pictures.
"I was out looking for the Green Mess Weaver spider and came across this snail," said Tim. "I thought it looked different from other snails I had seen at Attenborough in the past so I took a specimen."
Mr Sexton, who admitted that he is more of a moth expert than a snail specialist, has found that the snails are more likely to exist in the south of the country but that recent warm and wet weather has coaxed them further north.
"They were first discovered in Devon in the 1950s," he said. "It's assumed it arrived here with exotic garden plants, and that's how it's been transported around the country as well," he said.
"It's quite possible that this individual could have originated somewhere nearby.
"A snail's egg on a little bit of vegetation could have easily made it's way to the nature reserve by train."
Mr Sexton explained that milder winters in recent years have seen species usually reliant on warmer climates make their way to the county.
"It's really exciting to see a popular reserve like Attenborough still producing new finds so close to its 50th year," he added.
Across Nottingham, the find has sparked interest at St Ann's
Allotments, where plot holders are sharing pictures to help track- the species.
"If you see unusual varieties or an increase in varieties of species it tells you about what's happening on the site," said heritage officer Mo Cooper. "I'm sure Attenborough are quite excited about the snail. We found a clearwing moth about ten years ago that hadn't been seen in Nottinghamshire for 100 years."
But snails in St Ann's had better watch out for one allotment holder who likes to eat them.
"He has French heritage," said Ms Cooper. "He collects them and has been looking at ways to attract more snails to his garden.
"Most allotment holders try to strike a balance because snails like to eat cabbage and lettuce, which many people are trying to grow."
