Snails bred in human care for the first time at Chester Zoo have been sent to repopulate an island in Madeira, Portugal. More than 1,300 critically endangered snails have been released into the wild after being rescued from the edge of extinction, with a little help from a team of conservationists from the UK and Madeira. The Desertas Island land snails were thought to have disappeared altogether, with no living examples recorded for more than 100 years.

Snails bred in human care for the first time at Chester Zoo have been sent to repopulate an island in Madeira, Portugal. More than 1,300 critically endangered snails have been released into the wild after being rescued from the edge of extinction, with a little help from a team of conservationists from the UK and Madeira. The Desertas Island land snails were thought to have disappeared altogether, with no living examples recorded for more than 100 years.