this snail I found in my garden in Phuket - Thailand in the rain season of the year 2013.
The Snail is bigger than my iphon5.
in the rainy season you can see these snails often. but not often such a giant.
beautifully the wonders of nature.
Achatina fulica (text from Wikipedia)
is a species of large land snail that belong in the Achatinidae family. It is also famously known as the giant African snail or giant African land snail. This snail species has been considered a significant cause in pest issues around the world. Internationally, it is the most frequently occurring type of snail invasive species.
Outside of its native range this snail thrives in many types of habitat in areas with mild climates. It feeds voraciously and is a vector for plant pathogens, causing severe damage to agricultural crops and native plants. It competes with native snail taxa, is a nuisance pest of urban areas, and spreads human disease. This snail is listed as one of the top 100 invasive species in the world.
The species is native to East Africa, but it has been widely introduced to other parts of the world through the pet trade, as a food resource, and by accidental introduction.
This species has been found in China since 1931 (map of distribution in 2007), and its initial point of distribution in China was Xiamen.[5] The snail has also been established in the Pratas Islands, of Taiwan, throughout India, the Pacific, Indian Ocean islands, and the West Indies. The species was established in the United States in 1936. They were brought to the U. S. through imports. They were intended to be used for educational uses and to be pets. Some were also introduced because they were accidentally shipped with other cargo. Eradication is currently underway in Florida.
The species has recently been observed in Bhutan (Gyelposhing, Mongar), where it is an invasive species. It has begun to attack agricultural fields and flower gardens. It is believed there that dogs have died as a result of consuming the snail.
This species is a simultaneous hermaphrodite; each individual has both testes and ovaries and is capable of producing both sperm and ova. Instances of self-fertilization are rare, occurring only in small populations. Although both snails in a mating pair can simultaneously transfer gametes to each other (bilateral mating), this is dependent on the size difference between the partners. Snails of similar size will reproduce in this way. Two snails of differing sizes will mate unilaterally (one way), with the larger individual acting as a female. This is due to the comparative resource investment associated with the different genders.[citation needed]
Like other land snails, these have intriguing mating behaviour, including petting their heads and front parts against each other. Courtship can last up to half an hour, and the actual transfer of gametes can last for two hours. Transferred sperm can be stored within the body for up to two years. The number of eggs per clutch averages around 200. A snail may lay five to six clutches per year with a hatching viability of about 90%.
Adult size is reached in about six months, after which growth slows, but does not cease until death. Life expectancy is commonly five or six years in captivity, but the snails can live for up to ten years. They are active at night and spend the day buried underground.