Snails are born out of white/yellow eggs from their mother or father, as snails are hermaphrodites, and hatch approximately 2 or 4 weeks after being laid. For the baby snails to hatch, the weather has to be the perfect mix of warm and damp weather.
The weather is particularly good for snail births between February and October every year, which is when the majority of snails are born. Snails lay their eggs in the ground around 1 to 1 1/2 inches deep and begin laying eggs at approximately 6 weeks to 5 years of age, depending on the snail species.
Snails are able to produce a lot of offspring and will conceive between 100 and 400 eggs depending on the species. Only a small number of the eggs will actually make it to full maturity as snails are often eaten by predators or washed away by rain. Baby snails are unable to protect themselves as they do not have a shell hard enough to deter all predators and they are slow moving. Baby snails are born with shells, but they are fragile and soft. As they get calcium in their body, the shell will begin to harden. This is why baby snails always eat the shell of the egg that they came from because it is a rich source of calcium.
