Giant Snail

1. The African Giant Snail
Scientific Name: Lissachatina fulica

2. • Domain: Eukaryota
• Kingdom: Animalia
• Phylum: Mollusca
• Class: Gastropoda
• Order: Stylommatophora
• Superfamily: Achationoidea
• Family: Achatinidae
• Genus: Lissachatina
• Species: fulica
Systematic Position:
Air- breathing land snails
Native to Africa; 5-7 whorls
Foot below the gut. Spirally
coiled
Soft body

4. Habit and Habitat
--Warm tropical climates with mild temperatures all year round and
high humidity
-- Found in agricultural areas, coastal areas and wetlands, natural and
planted forests, scrublands and shrublands, and urban zones.
• Feeding: feeds voraciously
Adult : decaying organic matter, garbage, fallen fruit and animal
manure.
Younger : living plants:- flowers and vegetables; feed on over
500 plant species.
• typically herbivorous but prey on other snails.
• hibernate under rocks or in loose soil during unfavorable conditions

5. • A large snail: Nocturnal
• Shell: narrow, conical, coffee-colored; up to 20 cm in length
• Hermaphrodite but cross fertilization occurs
• Produces eggs: Round yellow, 5mm in length, 100-400
• Eggs hatch at temp >15°C
• hatch within a few hours up to 17 days.
• sexually mature at 6 months of age
• live up to 5-9 years
• lay a total of 1,000 eggs.

6. Distribution
• Origin: Eastern Africa
• Particularly: Kenya and Tanzania
• First occurrence outside Africa was: Bengal, India
• Then transported mistakenly and purposefully
• Current Distribution: found most in southern hemisphere countries
• Also identified in Southern, Southeastern and eastern asia, West Indies, US
• Throughout Africa, Indian Ocean Islands, Australia, New Zealand, South
America
• If not immediately intercepted, they populate exponentially making it
extremely difficult to control in a timely and cost efficient fashion.

8.  One of the most invasive pests for agriculture causing economic crisis for
farmers.
 Attacks more than 500 types of plants preferring
Peanuts, Fruits, Cocoa, Cassava, Rubber and many species of legumes, Coconut,
Cucurbits.
 Young ones feed on flowers and vegetables
 Adult ones prefer decaying organic matter.
 The snail causes loss of crop yield, spread of plant pathogens and increase in
cost production.c
 Also known to damage building by eating stucco (plaster) and calcium
materials
THREATS CAUSED BY GIANT SNAIL

12. • This species also
harbours a parasitic
nematode
Angiostrongylus
cantonensis which
can cause meningitis
rat lungworm
(Angiostrongyliasis)
in human beings

13. Lissachatina also pollutes the surroundings by it’s shell.
After the species dies, the calcium carbonate found in the shells
neutralizes the soil. Altering the properties of plant that will
grow on the soil.

14. Control measures
Collecting
• . Hand-pinking of snails or killing them by placing in salt water for 2 or
more days.
Quarantine
- Treatment and inspection of goods that can harbour the snail and
prevent further spreading. All imports to other countries should be
handled with utmost care.

15. Physical controls
• The Giant snail rarely moves on bare ground. At least 1.5 meters of land
around the crop for protection
Chemical controls
-The Giant snail favours high humidity
-Use of mollusicide such as metaldehyde (Snail bait) on susceptible plants.
Highly toxic for these snails when consumed.
Biological controls
Introducing:
-Ducks (Anas) can reduce the number of snails.
-Two predatory snails- Euglandina rosea, Gonaxis quadrilateralis and
flatworm Platydemus manokwari are natural enemies of the snail.