Biology and Food Habits of the Invasive Snail Allopeas gracile (Gastropoda: Subulinidae)

The biology of the widely occurring but poorly known terrestrial snail Allopeas gracile (Hutton, 1834) (Gastropoda: Subulinidae) was determined, emphasizing food relationships. Isolated snails reproduced without cross fertilization. These snails deposited small clusters of eggs (3–7 per d) totaling...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Florida entomologist 2017-03, Vol.100 (1), p.116-123
Main Author: Capinera, John L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Allopeas gracile
Aquatic plants
Biological fertilization
Biology
Clusters
Cockroaches
comportamiento alimentario
Duration
Eggs
estatus de plaga
Feeding
feeding behavior
Fertilization
Flowers
Flowers & plants
Food and nutrition
Food habits
Food plants
Food preferences
Foods
Freshwater weeds
Fungi
Growth
Habits
Hatching
hospedero
host
invasive pest
Invasive species
Leaves
Marine molluscs
mollusc
mollusk
Mollusks
molusco
Museums
Oviposition
pest status
plaga invasora
Plants
Plants (botany)
RESEARCH PAPERS
Snails
Sooty mold
Subulinidae
Temperature effects
Terrestrial environments
Vegetables
Vegetation
Weeds
Zoology
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Description
Summary:The biology of the widely occurring but poorly known terrestrial snail Allopeas gracile (Hutton, 1834) (Gastropoda: Subulinidae) was determined, emphasizing food relationships. Isolated snails reproduced without cross fertilization. These snails deposited small clusters of eggs (3–7 per d) totaling about 20 per mo once oviposition commenced (after about 50 d). The snails grew rapidly for 50 d, attaining a mass of about 25 mg, then grew more slowly, eventually attaining a mass of about 50 mg after 250 d. Hatching occurred over a wide range of temperatures. The mean duration of the egg stage decreased from 18.7 to 8.0 d as the temperature increased from 19.5 to 32.0 °C. Allopeas gracile was omnivorous, feeding on green plants (vegetables, weeds, and flowers), fungi (cultivated mushroom and sooty mold), and animal matter (dead cockroaches and earthworms), but not decaying vegetation (tree leaves). Although this species is omnivorous, many plants allowed only maintenance, not fostering rapid growth. These small snails consumed only about 1.5 cm2 per d of favored food (lettuce) at maturity, and considerably less of most plants offered. This invasive snail does not seem to be destined to be a significant pest except perhaps under restricted circumstances.
ISSN:0015-4040
1938-5102
DOI:10.1653/024.100.0117