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Channeled Apple Snail (Pomacea canaliculata) |
WHAT?
Apple snails are a large family of mollusks made up of over half a dozen different types and variations of the same invertebrate. The invasive species becoming a problem in Florida, and throughout other parts of the world, is the Channeled Apple Snail (Pomacea canaliculata) which is indigenous to South America. The sunshine state is home to a native species, the Florida apple snail, which is significantly smaller and much different than its exotic counterpart. The South American snails are remarkably large, resilient to varying conditions, and voracious foragers of all types of aquatic vegetation. These characteristics make them the perfect model of an invasive species.
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Snail eggs laid on emergent vegetation |
WHERE?
Channeled apple snails made their first move years and years ago when they were introduced into Thailand and other southeastern Asian countries as an experimental staple in the escargot trade. The snails never became a popular food item, but they spread rampantly throughout the rice fields, turning out to be a major problem for the Asian agircultural industry. Apple snails were marketed once more around the world, this time in the aquaculture trade, as a very desirous aquarium pet. Eventually they began turning up in water systems (most likely with a helping hand from humans) and have now spread to many continents around the globe. In the United States, channeled apple snails can be found in various locations in the southeastern part of the country including Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, California, Hawaii, and Florida. They thrive in places similar to that of their native habitat: warm, wet areas with aquatic, emergent (out of the water) vegetation on which to lay their eggs.
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Channeled apple snail egg casing |
WHEN?
There is some debate over when the channeled apple snail arrived in Florida, though most agree that it happened somewhere in the late 1970s or early 1980s. It is thought that the state's population began in South Florida, in the Palm Beach area, and moved upward. Reports of snail sightings in Central Florida have started to emerge in the past two to three years.
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Collected apple snail adults |
HOW?
It is thought that total eradication of an established population of channeled apple snails is probably not possible. This is due to their ability to produce so many offspring continually throughout the year. However, researchers from around the world have been trying to develop management plans to combat the impending consequences. Measures that have already been implemented in agricultural settings include the use of pesticides as well as biological controls, notably the use of fish and ducks. Hand picking has been found to be the only sure and safe way to dispose of the snails, though such a method could not be possible on a large agricultural scale. The City of Lakeland has been studying local populations of channeled apple snails, particularly in downtown's Lake Mirror, in an attempt to discern the most ecologically safe way of controlling the invasive species in this area.
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Comparing egg casings: non-native (left) and native (right) |
WHY?
It is imparative that populations of channeled apple snails, as well as other exotic species, be managed to prevent the collapse of our local aquatic ecosystems. Native snails cannot compete with their larger cousins for food and other resources and are eventually weeded out of the food chain. Likewise the ecosystem itself cannot support a population of foreign animals that it was not prepared to handle. Plant colonies are not able to reestablish in time, wildlife are not able to find enough food resources, populations begin to dwindle, and a destructive cycle is created that takes years to reverse.
HOW YOU CAN HELP: Be aware of exotic apple snails present in water bodies in your area. Never transport snails to another location or water source; doing so could foster a new population that would be deterimental to that ecosystem. Also people are advised not to eat the snails because it is believed they contain a parasite that may be harmful to humans.
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