Behavior
Lobatus gigas has an unusual means of locomotion, which was described in 1922 by the American zoologist George Howard Parker (1864–1955). The animal first fixes the posterior end of the foot by thrusting the point of the sickle-shaped operculum into the substrate, then it extends the foot in a forward direction, lifting and throwing the shell forward in a so-called leaping motion. This way of moving is considered to resemble that of pole vaulting, making L. gigas a good climber even of vertical concrete surfaces. This odd leaping form of locomotion may also help prevent predators from following the snail's chemical traces, which would otherwise be a continuous trail on the substrate.
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