Achantina achatina

Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Subspecies

Achatina achatina achatina (Linnaeus, 1758)
Achatina achatina bayoli Morelet, 1888
Achatina achatina depravata Bequaert, 1950
Achatina achatina elegans (Link, 1807)
Achatina achatina monochromatica Pilsbry, 1904
Achatina achatina roseolabiata Bequaert, 1950
Achatina achatina togoensis Bequaert and Clench, 1934

Distribution

The species is believed to be native to West Africa, within 160 kilometres (99 miles) to 300 kilometres (190 miles) of the coasts off Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Togo, Benin, Ghana, and Nigeria.

Achatina achatina is routinely confiscated by quarantine authorities at United States airports, especially in Baltimore, Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, and San Francisco.[2] These large snails are kept as pets in the Western world, where owners prize their large size, distinctive markings, and rarity.[3]

It has been suggested that these species be given top national quarantine significance in the United States.[4]

Ecology

Like almost all pulmonate gastropods, these snails are hermaphrodites, having male and female sex organs. Each snail lays up to 1200 eggs per year. Achatina achatina is an important source of animal protein for West African forest-dwelling ethnic groups, and there is potential for commercial farming.[8]

This species' substantial size and potential for rapid population growth can make the snail a serious pest when introduced to non-native ecosystems. The population size of this species can be curtailed through disease caused by the bacterium Aeromonas hydrophila[9] but it often has no other natural enemies.[10]