Very little is known about communication between snails in this species, but it is thought that they release a chemical agent. Other snail species will communicate through chemical means.
Communication Channels: tactile ; chemical
Perception Channels: tactile ; chemical
This species has no conservation status.
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
State of Michigan List: no special status
Pomacea canaliculata becomes sexually mature when 2.5 cm in diameter. Reproduction rates depend on environmental conditions and food availability. Reproduction is highest in the spring and summer and lowest in the fall and winter. Average clutch size is 200-600 eggs, laid every few weeks. Eggs are reddish in color and loosely attached to each other, and are attached to an object above surface. Eggs incubate from one to two weeks and after hatching, become juveniles in 15-25 days. The snails are sexually mature adults 45-59 days later. The reproductive period lasts from 2 months to 3 years; this period can decrease with latitude and environmental changes. Life cycles are shorter during good conditions when the snails remain reproductively active throughout the year. Life cycles are longer during tough conditions. When not reproducing because of harsh environmental conditions the channeled apple snails bury themselves in mud and decrease their metabolism while waiting for conditions to improve.
Development - Life Cycle: indeterminate growth
Pomacea canaliculata is one of the top 100 “World’s Worst Invaders.” Snails introduced in Asia have been the number one pest in rice fields, which leads to large economic losses in areas such as the Philippines. Snails introduced in Hawai’i became major taro pests. They can spread very quickly from agricultural areas to freshwater and other aquatic environments.
Negative Impacts: crop pest
Very little, if any, information is known about positive economic importance for humans from the channeled apple snail. However, they are cooked and eaten in parts of Asia such as China and Thailand. Their invasive nature has made their use in aquarium cultures a concern, and has been discouraged.
Positive Impacts: pet trade ; food
These snails have been introduced to different areas by humans and quickly spread, particularly in wetlands. In wetlands and natural freshwater systems they compete with native snails for food and cause destruction of native aquatic vegetation. Their quick reproductive rate during high food availability causes them to rapidly change the habitat where they reside. Although the channeled apple snails have many predators, since they move mostly at night they are somewhat protected. Their eggs, however, are mainly preyed on by only one species, leading to high survival rates of the snails' offspring.
Pomacea canaliculata is an intermediate host for the rat lungworm, Angiostrongylus cantonensis, which is the most common cause of eosinophilic meningitis in Southeast Asia and the Pacific Basin.
Ecosystem Impact: biodegradation
Commensal/Parasitic Species:
Pomacea canaliculata eats microscopic vegetation, floating or submerged higher plants, detritus and dead insects. The channeled apple snail is also known for eating other freshwater snails. Younger snails of this species prefer algae and detritus, while older snails prefer higher plants. They are extremely polyphagous, meaning they feed on an extensive variety of foods. This is important because as their food availability and intake increases, they are more reproductively active.
Animal Foods: mollusks; zooplankton
Plant Foods: leaves; algae; macroalgae ; phytoplankton
Other Foods: detritus
Primary Diet: carnivore (Molluscivore ); herbivore (Folivore , Algivore, Eats sap or other plant foods); omnivore ; detritivore
The channeled apple snail is native from Argentina to the Amazon basin. This species was also introduced to most of southern, eastern, and southeast Asia and the southern part of the United States.
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Introduced ); oriental (Introduced ); neotropical (Native ); oceanic islands (Introduced )
The channeled apple snail is found in a variety of different habitats, including the subtropics and tropics in the Amazon Interior Basin and Plata Basin. This species is found in a variety of freshwater areas such as lakes, water courses, wetlands and agricultural areas. Temperature preferences for P. canaliculata range from 18 to 25 degrees C. Temperatures below 18 degrees or above 32 degrees C drastically increases the snail's mortality rate.
Habitat Regions: tropical ; freshwater
Aquatic Biomes: lakes and ponds
Wetlands: marsh ; swamp
Other Habitat Features: agricultural
Pomacea canaliculata lives around four years, but will live longer at cooler temperatures. However, they cannot survive at temperatures less than 20 degrees C.
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 4 years.
The shell of this snail is globular, from 40-60 mm high and 45-75 mm wide, but can reach 150 mm in length. These numbers vary depending on environmental conditions; the shell grows mostly in the spring and summer but growth slows in the fall and winter. The shell can be yellow, green or brown and has five to six whorls separated by a deep indented suture which gives it the “channeled” name. The aperture is large and oval shaped with males having a rounder aperture than females. However, females in the adult stage are overall larger than males. The operculum is moderately thick, corneous, concentric and light to dark brown in color. The operculum is retractable at the shell opening. The body of the snail can vary in color from yellow to brown and almost black. The siphon has yellow spots and its tentacles are curled under the shell when it is resting. The snail is closely related to other species in the canaliculata group, however, distinctions can be made by looking at the color of the eggs, shell size, angle of indented sutures and shell opening.
Range length: 40 to 60 mm.
Other Physical Features: ectothermic ; heterothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Sexual Dimorphism: female larger
Solenopsis geminata, also known as the fire ant, is the only species known to specifically prey on the eggs of these snails. Egg clutches produced by this snail are extremely visible due to their bright colors on green vegetation. The distinguishing colors show unpalatability to predators. Experiments demonstrated the egg yoke makes it unpalatable to predators. Another defense against predation is depositing eggs on vegetation with thorns. Adults have a wide range of predators including insects, fish, amphibians, crocodilians, reptiles, crayfish, turtle, mammals and birds. Their main defense is dropping to the bottom and burying into a spot until they get into contact with a hard object like a stone.
Known Predators:
Unlike most other snails, P. canaliculata is not hermaphroditic. A male and a female reproduce and if water conditions are optimal and food supply is adequate, they may mate. Due to the sexual dimorphism, these snails typically copulate in pairs. Copulation and spawning tend to be time-consuming activities. Intercourse can last 10-20 hours (and males fast during this time) while the egg-laying process can take up to five hours. In addition, males tend to choose larger females in order to produce more and healthier offspring.
Pomacea canaliculata becomes sexually mature when it reaches 2.5 cm in diameter. Reproductive rates depend on environmental conditions and food availability. Reproduction is highest in the spring and summer and lowest in the fall and winter. Average clutch size is 200-600 eggs, laid every few weeks (egg clutch sizes are 2.2-3.5 mm in diameter). The reproductive period lasts from 2 months to 3 years; this period can decrease with latitude and environmental changes. Life cycles are shorter during good conditions when the snails remain reproductively active throughout the year. Cycles are longer during tougher conditions.
Breeding interval: Channeled apple snails breed more frequently in the spring and summer every few weeks and less frequently in the fall and winter.
Breeding season: These snails breed all year but more in the summer and spring.
Average number of offspring: 200-600.
Average gestation period: 1-2 weeks.
Range time to independence: 15 to 25 days.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 45 to 59 days.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 45 to 59 days.
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; year-round breeding ; sexual ; fertilization ; oviparous
There is no parental care by adult channeled apple snails after eggs are laid.
Parental Investment: pre-fertilization (Provisioning)
Pomacea canaliculata, commonly known as the golden apple snail or the channeled apple snail, is a species of large freshwater snail with gills and an operculum, an aquatic gastropod mollusc in the family Ampullariidae, the apple snails. South American in origin, this species is considered to be in the top 100 of the "World's Worst Invasive Alien Species".[2] It is also ranked as the 40th worst alien species in Europe and the worst alien species of gastropod in Europe.[3]
The native distribution of P. canaliculata is basically tropical and subtropical,[4] including Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Brazil.[5] The southernmost record for the species is Paso de las Piedras reservoir, south of the Buenos Aires province, Argentina.[6]
This species also occurs in the United States, where the initial introductions were probably from aquarium release, aka "aquarium dumping". The non-indigenous distribution includes: Lake Wawasee in Kosciusko County, Indiana;[7] Langan Park and Three Mile Creek in Mobile, Alabama;[8][9] a pond bordering the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta in Baldwin County, Alabama;[9] Little Wekiva River, Orlando, Florida; a lake near Jacksonville, Florida;[10] Miramar Reservoir in San Diego County, California; and a pond near Yuma, Arizona. Established populations exist in California and Hawaii.[11]
The species has been found in China since 1981.[12] Its initial point of distribution in China was Zhongshan city.[13]
The species has been found in Chile since 2009 with a restricted distribution.[14]
The species has also been found in the Philippines, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Papua New Guinea, parts of Indonesia and Malaysia, Singapore, and Guam. In 1980, the apple snail was introduced to south-east Asia as a food item and aquarium pet. First, it was introduced to Taiwan, then Japan, then Thailand and the Philippines. Instead of catching on, snails were released or escaped and have become a major agricultural pest.[15]
Samples taken 3 December 2020 in Mwea Constituency, Kirinyaga County, Kenya were the first in that country, and indeed the first in continental Africa.[16]
The shells of these applesnails are globular in shape. Normal coloration typically includes bands of brown, black, and yellowish-tan; color patterns are extremely variable. Albino and gold color variations exist.[17][11]
The size of the shell is up to 150 millimetres (6 in) in length.[11]
This species lives in freshwater lake, river, pond and swamp habitats and tolerates a wide range of temperatures.[18] In natural settings, they rely on grasses and other emergent vegetation growing along the perimeter of bodies of water to lay their eggs. Where invasive, they can utilize crops such as rice and taro as a substrate for reproduction.[19]
Pomacea canaliculata is extremely polyphagous, feeding on vegetal (primarily macrophytophagous, feeding on floating or submersed higher plants), detrital, and animal matter. Diet may vary with age, with younger smaller individuals feeding on algae and detritus, and older, bigger (15 millimetres (19⁄32 in) and above) individuals later shifting to higher plants.[20]
This species negatively impacts rice and taro agriculture worldwide where it has been introduced.[11]
In temperate climates, the egg-laying period of this species extends from early spring to early fall.[21] while in tropical areas reproduction is continuous. The duration of the reproductive period of P. canaliculata decreases with latitude, to a minimum of six months in the southern limit of its natural distribution.[6] Adult females oviposit on emergent vegetation at night, but will also lay their eggs on rocks and manmade surfaces like boats. Once laid, the eggs take approximately two weeks to hatch, during which time the bright pink or orange coloration of the eggs fades.[22]
First direct evidence (of all animals), that proteinase inhibitor from eggs of Pomacea canaliculata interacts as trypsin inhibitor with protease of potential predators, has been reported in 2010.[23]
The snail kite, Rostrhamus sociabilis, is a predator of this species in South America. The fire ant, Solenopsis geminata, has also been observed to prey upon this species.[24]
Approximately 1% of the Pomacea canaliculata on sale on local markets in Dali City, Yunnan, China were found to be infected with pathogenic Angiostrongylus cantonensis in 2009.[25]
Crude cyclotide extracts from both Oldenlandia affinis and Viola odorata plants showed molluscicidal activity comparable to the synthetic molluscicide metaldehyde.[26] Because submerging developing eggs below the water reduces hatching success, manipulating the water level in agricultural fields and dammed reservoirs may provide a tool for controlling invasive populations.[22]
This species is edible. Pomacea canaliculata constitutes one of the three predominant freshwater snails found in Chinese markets.[27] In China and Southeast Asia, consumption of raw or undercooked snails of Pomacea canaliculata and other snails is the primary route of infection with Angiostrongylus cantonensis causing angiostrongyliasis.[25]
In Isan, Thailand these snails are collected and consumed. They are picked by hand or with a hand-net from canals, swamps, ponds, and flooded paddy fields during the rainy season. During the dry season when these snails are concealed under dried mud, collectors use a spade to scrape the mud in order to find them. The snails are usually collected by women and children.[28] After collection, the snails are cleaned and parboiled. They are then taken out of their shells, cut, and cleaned in salted water. After rinsing with water, they are mixed with roasted rice, dried chili pepper, lime juice, and fish sauce, and then eaten.[28]
Special dishes using Pomacea canaliculata are also produced in China. Dish name is 田螺塞肉.[29]
Some French restaurants are trying to use Pomacea canaliculata as an alternative to escargot.[30] After boiling, remove Pomacea canaliculata guts and eggs. Washing only the muscular body with vinegar will eliminate the odor. As a result, it can be used as an alternative to escargot.[31]
Pomacea canaliculata has displaced some of the indigenous rice field apple snail species in the genus Pila traditionally eaten in Southeast Asia (including Thailand and the Philippines) such as Pila ampullacea and Pila pesmei; as well as the viviparid trapdoor snail (Cipangopaludina chinensis).[32][33]
In some paddy fields in Japan, Pomacea canaliulata is used to control weeds by allowing the snail to eat them. However, this method runs risk of the snails also eating young rice plants, and of spreading to nearby fields and waterways as an invasive pest.[34][35][36]
It is a part of the ornamental pet trade for freshwater aquaria.[37]
This article incorporates public domain text from reference[11] and CC-BY-2.0 text from reference[28] and CC-BY-2.5 text from reference.[25]
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(help) Pomacea canaliculata, commonly known as the golden apple snail or the channeled apple snail, is a species of large freshwater snail with gills and an operculum, an aquatic gastropod mollusc in the family Ampullariidae, the apple snails. South American in origin, this species is considered to be in the top 100 of the "World's Worst Invasive Alien Species". It is also ranked as the 40th worst alien species in Europe and the worst alien species of gastropod in Europe.