A giant snail invasion problem has recently been introduced in the New Port Richey area, Pasco County, Florida. The area is currently in lockdown for two weeks, so they can properly eradicate the population.
The species, Giant African Land Snail, is known to grow to an unusually massive size and reproduce in large quantities. It is said that its appetites comprise at least 500 different plants, and a single snail can lay up to 1,750 eggs yearly. Can you believe that?
The snail is harmful to the community and environment since there is no natural predator to control its population. Hence, it is threatening the vegetation, the infrastructure, and possibly people’s health. Due to its rapidly growing population, yet hindering slowness, the snails can tear apart an incredible amount of biomass. It may naturally have a plant-based diet; however, it has been eating the paint and stucco on buildings. It can also be seen clinging onto vehicles and machinery.
One important issue these snails have brought can be threatening to humans. It carries the parasite rat lungworm that typically causes meningitis, which is a bacterial infection of inflammation around the spinal cord and brain.
This isn’t the first time Florida had a problem with the Giant African Land Snail. Back in 1969, the invasive giant snail was first spotted and eradicated in 1975. However, it was detected again in 2011 due to people using it for religious ceremonies or them hitching a ride on cargo ships. It took ten years and $24 million to eradicate about 170,000 snails in 2021. They used metaldehyde, a dehydrating pesticide to kill the snails. In addition, they also capture the snails to later euthanize them. Florida states that it’s “one of the most damaging” snails in the world.
I find it intriguing how many times Florida has had the issue with these mollusks. At least they have the experience to know what will be the easiest, fastest way to eradicate its population and hopefully have more preventive measures to ensure this problem won’t happen again.
Czachor, E. M. (2022, July 7). Another giant African snail sighting forces Florida county into quarantine. CBS News. from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/giant-african-land-snail-florida-invasive-species-quarantine/
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