Origin
Achatina fulica is originally from East Africa.

Life Cycle
A. fulica, is one of the largest land snails in the world. It can grow up to 8 in. (20.3 cm) long and over 4 in. in diameter. The brownish shell consists of seven to nine whorls that cover half or more of the swollen body whorl. A. fulicacan live up to 9 years. They contain both female and male reproductive organs. After a single mating A. fulica can produce 100 - 400 eggs. A mated adult can produce about 1,200 eggs per year.

Distribution
A. fulica has established itself throughout the Indo-Pacific and the Hawaiian Islands. This pest has also been introduced into the Caribbean islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe with recent detections in Saint Lucia and Barbados. The last reported outbreak and eradication of A. fulica in Florida occurred in 1966 when a boy smuggled three of them into Miami as pets, but it is still being found in FL

Control Efforts
A. fulica has been introduced purposefully and accidentally to many parts of the world for medicinal purposes, food (escargot), and for research purposes (Raut and Barker 2002). In some instances, the snail has escaped cultivation and established reproductive populations in the wild. In Florida and Queensland, established populations were eradicated (Raut and Barker 2002). Molluscicides are effective in managing A. fulica, but most of these types of pesticides also have a negative effect on beneficial organisms such as earthworms, ground beetles and other soil dwelling organisms.

http://www.tsusinvasives.org/home/database/lissachatina-fulica

Selected Images

Maps

Invasive Listing Sources

• Idaho Invasive Species Act
• Injurious Wildlife in Hawaii
• Invasive Species of Concern in Georgia
• Maryland Invasive Species Council - Invasive Species of Concern in Maryland
• Michigan’s Prohibited and Restricted Species
• National Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey Target Species
• National Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey Target Species - 2015
• New York Regulated and Prohibited Invasive Species - Prohibited
• Ontario’s Invading Species Awareness Program Tracked Species List
• Pests not known to occur in the United States or of limited distribution
• South Carolina Plant Pest List