ByJulian Lucero, Blake Wilson
LSU AgCenter
The apple snail, Pomacea maculata, is a global invasive rice pest. Within the past decade, the apple snail has established itself in Louisiana but has only recently begun infesting rice farms in the southwestern region. Adult snails have large brown-green or gold shells and lay large pink egg masses. Their fast-reproductive rate and voracious appetite allow the snails to reach high population densities in natural bodies of water as well as in rice and crawfish ponds. The snails are so disruptive to crawfish trapping that some ponds have been drained early and fishing terminated.