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- Title
- BIOLOGY, ECOLOGY AND CONTROL OF THE INVASIVE CHANNELED APPLE SNAIL, POMACEA CANALICULATA.
- Creator
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Trexler, Christina, Fauth, John, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Invasive species are detrimental to native biotas worldwide. Recently, Florida was invaded by a freshwater snail (Pomacea canaliculata) native to Argentina. This snail is a serious pest of rice crops in Asia, but little is known about its interactions within Florida ecosystems. Possible competitive exclusion of the native congener (P. paludosa) is a concern because it is the almost exclusive prey of the federally endangered Everglades snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis). My research consisted...
Show moreInvasive species are detrimental to native biotas worldwide. Recently, Florida was invaded by a freshwater snail (Pomacea canaliculata) native to Argentina. This snail is a serious pest of rice crops in Asia, but little is known about its interactions within Florida ecosystems. Possible competitive exclusion of the native congener (P. paludosa) is a concern because it is the almost exclusive prey of the federally endangered Everglades snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis). My research consisted of three parts. First, to identify possible methods to control P. canaliculata in the egg stage, I experimentally evaluated the effects of photoperiod, substrate availability, and food type and availability on hatching success and hatchling survival. None of these factors significantly affected hatching or survival, suggesting that P. canaliculata could invade many water bodies. Second, I used a randomized block design to assess the separate and combined effects of population density and food availability on growth and spawning of P. canaliculata. Food availability but not density significantly affected growth; snails fed less food grew less, but neither factor affected spawning. Third, I used a replacement series design to assess competition between P. canaliculata and P. paludosa under food limitation. For both species, snails fed less grew significantly less, and snails exposed to greater congener densities spawned less than when exposed to conspecifics only. While my results predict that P. paludosa should exclude P. canaliculata, previous literature and current invasions suggest that the exotic snail may co-exist with its North American congener.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2011
- Identifier
- CFE0003877, ucf:48725
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003877
- Title
- Does the journey matter more than the destination? The contribution of geospatial characteristics and local variables to invasive Pomacea maculata distribution across ranchland wetlands.
- Creator
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Pierre, Steffan, Quintana-Ascencio, Pedro, Jenkins, David, Boughton, Elizabeth, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Geospatial characteristics such as isolation and avenues of connectivity influence an invader's pattern of dispersal and distribution. However many examinations of invasion success ignore the contribution of dispersal to patterns of invasion and focus only on the local environmental/habitat factors. This study examines the interaction of geospatial characteristics, that may influence dispersal, and local environmental factors, that may govern successful occupation, on the likelihood of...
Show moreGeospatial characteristics such as isolation and avenues of connectivity influence an invader's pattern of dispersal and distribution. However many examinations of invasion success ignore the contribution of dispersal to patterns of invasion and focus only on the local environmental/habitat factors. This study examines the interaction of geospatial characteristics, that may influence dispersal, and local environmental factors, that may govern successful occupation, on the likelihood of invasion (invasability) of wetlands within an agriculturally modified landscape. I examined the current invasion of seasonal wetlands in south-central Florida ranchland by non-native apple snails (Pomacea maculata (Ampullariidae)) as a model system for understanding this interaction. I surveyed spatial occurrence of P. maculata in 171 wetlands in 2014 and found they occurred in 43% of wetlands surveyed. I evaluated how occurrence was related to geospatial variables (proximity to propagule sources, shoreline complexity, interwetland distance, elevation, area and ditch presence) and wetland characteristics (pH, water hardness, conductivity and soil type) for 95 wetlands. Presence of ditch connections and more neutral water pH were associated with P. maculata occurrence. I did not find evidence that Euclidean distance and minimum ditch distance were associated with P. maculata occurrence. I also performed a 5 month field experiment where I translocated snails to previously occupied and non-occupied wetlands and measured snail survival and growth (20 wetlands from November to March). This experiment evaluated if non-occurrence during survey was more likely to be associated with unfavorable habitat conditions or dispersal limitation. Wetland pH and water hardness explained variation in P. maculata survival, and wetland pH best explained growth. I did not find evidence that prior occupancy affected the snail survival and growth, which suggests previously unoccupied wetlands are due to dispersal limitation. These results emphasize that man-made conduits can increase permeability of the landscape, facilitating the dispersal and introduction of nonnative species and the need for the inclusion of dispersal metrics in understanding invasive species distribution.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0006374, ucf:51527
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006374
