Title of the project
Alien land snails
Management
Prof Dr Bernhard Hausdorf
Org. categorisation
Malacology, land snails
Description of the
An increasing number of species are being spread beyond their native ranges, usually by humans, sometimes deliberately but often accidentally with goods or travellers. The spread of species across biogeographical barriers results in global biogeographic homogenisation. The distribution of alien species is primarily explained by prevailing climate and, to a lesser extent, by distance and trade. Alien species can disturb local ecosystems and contribute to the extinction of native species. They may become pests and cause economic impacts, and they may even be directly or indirectly harmful to human health as parasites, vectors or hosts. Therefore, the spread of alien species should be prevented, monitored and, if necessary, controlled or eradicated. However, for many taxa, especially invertebrates, we do not even have an overview of alien species and their distribution.
We monitor new introductions of alien snails and the further development of their ranges. Given the often rapid spread of alien snails and the limited number of malacologists recording them, we are exploiting data from community scientists, e.g. on the iNaturalist platform, which is an important source of knowledge on the spread of alien land snails. We try to understand the pathways of introduction and the factors that affect the establishment of alien snails, and make predictions about their potential spread. We also assess the known or expected impacts of these species on the natural environment and on socio-economic issues. Based on this assessment, we propose a prioritisation of invasive species.
Project results
Nurinsiyah, A.S. & Hausdorf, B. 2019. Listing, impact assessment and prioritisation of introduced land snail species in Indonesia. J. Moll. Stud, 85: 92-102.
Hausdorf, B. & Solvery, S. 2021. Introduction of the predatory land snail species Poiretia delesserti (Spiraxidae) in France. Malacologia, 63: 307-310.
Hausdorf, B., Parr, M., Shappell, L. J., Oldeland, J. & Robinson D. G. 2021. The introduction of the European Caucasotachea vindobonensis (Gastropoda: Helicidae) to North America, its origin and potential range in North America. Biol. Invasions, 23: 3281-3289.
Hausdorf, B. 2023. distribution patterns of established alien land snail species in the western Palaearctic. NeoBiota, 81: 1-32.
Hausdorf, B. 2023. Rapid increase in knowledge about the distribution of introduced predatory Testacella species (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora) in North America by community scientists. Biol. Invasions, 25: 2717-2725.
