International Journal of Molecular Ecology and Conservation, 2025, Vol.15, No.4, 196-205 http://ecoevopublisher.com/index.php/ijmec 20 0 hierarchical structure of the community. A. fulica's preference for certain specific plants may trigger ecological cascade effects (Raut and Barker, 2002; Andreazzi et al., 2017). For instance, in Hawaii, snails feed on both invasive weeds and native seedlings, but they prefer native leguminous plants rich in tender buds. As a result, the regeneration of such plants fails, and snail-tolerant exotic weeds take the opportunity to spread, leading to the evolution of vegetation types towards a single type. The massive feeding and excretion of the giant snail have altered the physical and chemical properties of the soil and the microbial community. After feeding on plants, they produce a large amount of feces, which increase soil organic matter and nutrients in the short term. However, excessive accumulation over a long period of time may lead to an imbalance in the soil nitrogen cycle. In addition, the sharp increase in the number of herbivorous snails may also disturb the food web relationship. In areas lacking snail predators, A. fulica occupies the energy positions that originally belonged to herbivorous insects and snails, while not being effectively utilized by higher trophic levels themselves, resulting in the asymmetry of energy flow in the food web (Da Silva et al., 2022). 4.3 Potential risks as a vector for pathogen transmission In addition to ecological and agricultural damage, the African land snail is also an important intermediate host for many pathogenic organisms, posing a potential threat to human and animal health. The most representative one is its relationship with Angiostrongylus cantonensis. A. fulica is one of the ideal hosts for the larvae of Angiostrongylus cantonensis. When snails feed on the eggs of nematodes in the feces of infected rodents, the larvae can develop to the third stage of infection within the snails (Figure 2). If humans consume raw or mistakenly eat snail tissues with larvae (such as small snails in vegetable gardens, mucus-contaminated vegetables and fruits, etc.), the larvae can penetrate the human brain and cause eosinophilic meningoencephalitis, commonly known as "mouse lung worm disease" (Lima et al., 2020; Rangel et al., 2024). The surface and mucus of the African land snail may also be attached with bacteria, fungi and plant pathogens. The research isolated the zoonotic bacteria carried by it, such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella, as well as the spores of plant pathogenic fungi like downy mildew. These pathogens spread as snails crawl in the environment, which may increase the risk of infection in humans and animals as well as crop diseases. Figure 2 Larvae of (A) Angiostrongylus cantonensis; (B, C) Cruzia tentaculata; (D) A free-leaving nematode (Adopted from Rangel et al., 2024) 5 Agricultural and Economic Impact Assessment 5.1 Types and degrees of crop damage A. Fulica feeds on a wide variety of plants, including vegetables, fruits, food crops, flowers and young trees. They use their powerful teeth and tongues to scrape and eat the surface tissues of leaves and stems. Common symptoms of damage are that the leaves of crops are gnawed into holes or only the veins remain, the tender stems of seedlings are gnawed off to the ground, and large areas of shriveled wounds appear on the surface of fruits. Leafy vegetables (such as lettuce, Chinese cabbage and cabbage) are often the first to be eaten up by snails at night,
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