Behaviour and Ecology of Pomacea canaliculata in Southern Pampas

Abstract

Pomacea canaliculata is in many aspects the best known species among apple snails (family Ampullariidae) although the available information is both fragmentary and geographically biased. Most studies in the exotic range focused in applied aspects in man-managed or artificial wetlands scattered over different countries in South Eastern Asia. In the natural range, on the contrary, the emphasis has been on basic studies of its reproductive biology, ecology and behaviour in populations from small streams located at the southernmost extreme of its distribution (Southern Pampas, Argentina). The extreme geographic position and the lotic nature of these populations may have biased some conclusions about the etoecological traits of P. canaliculata; contemporary evolution and genetic exchange may have also diversified these traits in the invaded range. Even though the ecological information from native populations may not be directly applicable elsewhere, it nevertheless remains as a necessary reference to understand the full potential of adaptation and spread of P. canaliculata to new environments around the world. Surprisingly enough, comparative studies of native and exotic populations of Pomacea spp. are almost lacking.