Morphological adaptation of P. canaliculata shell to the different ecosystems

Different physiological, morphological, and behavioral adaptations of Pomacea canaliculata aided them in their survival to different adverse environmental conditions. Furthermore, the said adaptations can be very vital in the control and management strategies that can be employed in the areas where their population posed a threat to food security. The study employed an explorative-investigative study design for the gathering of data. Eight hundred seventy-three Golden Apple Snails from different freshwater ecosystems, namely stream, irrigational canal, and rice field were collected, cleaned, and examined. To elucidate the different adaptations of the GAS to the various ecosystems, their shell characteristics were observed, recorded, and examined. Consequently, this study found out that those shells from snails sampled in streams had bigger length, width, width of the aperture, a higher number of bands, and whorls when compared to those shells from irrigational canals and rice fields. Moreover, there was a negative correlation between pH and dissolved oxygen to the height, width, and width of the aperture. There was also a significant correlation between the temperature and width, weight, and the number of bands. It was concluded that to control and manage the population of the GAS the area should have less palatable food sources and less anthropogenic activities so that environmental parameters like high pH, lower temperature, and higher dissolved oxygen can be achieved.