A not quite still life

Unlike the previous two days, I didn't get to spend today in a Zoology Museum full of biological blipfoto opportunities. Imagine my delight, therefore, when I found that my wife had collected a load of snails from our garden to see whether I fancied photographing them. I set this shot up on our garden green waste recycling bin, on a snail-chewed Hosta leaf, with our greenhouse in the background. The snail obligingly appeared from its shell. It is a Garden Snail, Latin name Cornu aspersum (formerly known as Helix aspera). The greenhouse is quite appropriate in this shot as we have had so many snails in the garden this year that we have had to hand-search the greenhouse every night to remove snails and protect the young plants. Seen close-up, even a common snail has its own unique natural beauty - but lay off the Hostas please!