Outbreaks of African Snail Attack Florida, USA A similar outbreak occurred in 1966, and is very detrimental.

VAnews - Florida State governments preoccupied with efforts to capture and destroy thousands of African snails that are endemic in their region. This effort to prevent the incident happening again in 1966.

As reported by MSNBC, Friday, September 16, 2011, a new population of giant African snails are found in the Miami-Dade, Florida. Reduce direct government officials to collect these slimy beasts.

Thursday this week, about 1,000 snails found within a radius of 1.6 km square. Hundreds of others were also found in the backyard of a house in Coral Gables. Capture process is still underway. Snails are planned to be collected and frozen to death. Not yet known from where this snail back up.

Animals mollusk species is very easy to breed. Dr. Trevor Smith of the Florida Department of Agriculture said that every time married, this snail can produce 100-400 eggs. Each year, a 1200 issue of snail eggs.

"Each snail species can live up to nine years and has a double sex," Smith said.

The biggest snail outbreaks have occurred in the area of ​​Miami, Florida, in 1966. At that time, a boy carrying three snails from Africa. Then her grandmother's third release in the garden.

The result was astonishing. In seven years, three snails that breed up to 18,000 birds.

Snail species can reach a maximum length of up to 20 cm in diameter and 10 cm. It took 10 years and cost U.S. $ 1 million or around Rp 8, 7 billion to eradicate this snail-snail at the time.

Why be eradicated? According to the Florida Department of Agriculture, this snail species is very destructive. "They eat at least 500 plant species, can damage the plaster walls and cement, as well as parasitic nematodes carry bacteria that cause meningitis." (kd)