Once thought extinct, over 1,300 rare snails released on remote island in bold conservation effort

A zoo in the United Kingdom is hoping a certain species of snails can save themselves as they are an endangered species. 

More than 1,300 tiny, critically endangered snails that were bred were let go on a remote Atlantic island

It was believed that the Desertas Island land snails were extinct as they had not been spotted in over 100 years, Chester Zoo said. 

But then a team of conservationists rediscovered small populations of two species of snails that had survived on the rocky cliffs of Deserta Grande Island, near Madeira.

The snails were then sent to zoos across Europe, where they were in conditions to help them thrive and breed.

1,329 snails were raised in Chester Zoo and were returned Bugio Island as part of a reintroduction. The island was chosen because it's safe from threats to snails such as invasive goats, rats, and mice.

Gerardo Garcia from Chester Zoo said that the reintroduction was "a major step in a species recovery plan."

"If it goes as well as we hope, more snails will follow them next spring. It’s a huge team effort which shows that it is possible to turn things around for highly threatened species," Garcia told Storyful.