Following the snail trail

It's that time of year again when Cbeebies has its Springwatch. Last year Callum didn't really take too much interest in it but boy is that the opposite this year. Each time we venture outside he's on a mission to find "bugs" of any form. We've hunted for woodlice in our front garden and watched ants bumping into each other and making us laugh and we've sang the Ladybird Ladybird song to countless ladybirds found in my flowers out back. We watched sparrows taking baths in the big puddles on the cafe roofs near where we live and watched the Pigeons being chased off the roofs by the big huge black bird that we have no idea what it is. I think a fun time has been had.

Now we have another item to put on our Springwatch list, this one is following snail trails (although I do have to confess they aren't real ones just ones that Callum "sees"). The real snail watch started a few weeks ago while the three of us were shopping at B&Q, on the walk through the car park we saw a snail moving along the footpath so we stopped and watched for a bit. Callum was fascinated by it and the trail that you get to see. We told him that we'd check on the way back to see how far the snail had gone. Sadly poor Mr Snail #1 had "moved home"... yes someone had stepped on the poor thing but rather than upset Callum we just told him that snails can move home, he didn't seem to notice too much the snail remains trod into the ground. Since then he has been keeping a keen eye out for more snails and was enthralled last week when we came out of playschool (in the pouring rain) to see the church notice board covered in snails. I think we counted about 20 plus snails. Of course by yesterday (Monday morning) all but two had gone and so this morning we had to look for their trails and find where they had gone. The conversations that took part were so funny.

One snail went up past the bus stop and crossed the road. When I said I didn't think snails crossed roads because cars were dangerous to them I was told that the cars all stopped and waited for the snail to cross even though it took a long time for the snail to cross.

Another snail turned right at the road the other one crossed and kept going straight as that was the way to the pub.

The third one we met near what will be Callum's school come September but I don't know what happened to him as the conversation changed to turtles and what snails and turtles have in their shells, sadly they don't have beds, toilets or baths in their shells. The main benefit of the shells I've been informed of is that it allows animals to live longer. I wonder if this has some truth because look how long some of those giant tortoises live till, however I don't think it's the cases with the snails, poor Mr Snail #1.

So what else I wonder have we got to look for in Spring Watch. Maybe it'll be squirrels.