Snails belong to the phylum?

1. Analyze the question The question asks which phylum snails belong to. This is a classification (taxonomy) question.

2. Explain the concept Animals are grouped into phyla based on their body structure. The phylum Mollusca includes animals with:

• A soft, unsegmented body
• A muscular foot used for movement
• A mantle, which often secretes a hard calcareous shell
• A rasping tongue called the radula (in most)

Examples include snails, slugs, mussels, oysters, and octopuses.

3. Go through the options

• A. Annelida: These are segmented worms such as earthworms and leeches. Snails are not segmented, so this is wrong.
• B. Mollusca: Snails have a soft body, a muscular foot, and a shell, so this fits.
• C. Echinodermata: These are spiny-skinned marine animals with radial symmetry, such as starfish and sea urchins. Snails are not in this group.
• D. Nematoda: These are unsegmented roundworms, many of them parasitic, such as Ascaris. Snails are not in this group.

4. Answer Snails (class Gastropoda) belong to the phylum Mollusca, which is option B.

5. Exam tip Remember the class Gastropoda as "stomach-foot": the animal seems to crawl on its stomach. The main molluscan classes are:

• Gastropoda: snails, slugs
• Bivalvia (Lamellibranchiata): mussels, oysters
• Cephalopoda: octopus, squid

If you see "soft body + shell + muscular foot" in a JAMB question, think Mollusca.