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. 2015 Nov 30;10(11):e0143724.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143724. eCollection 2015.

Effect of Climate Change on Invasion Risk of Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica Férussac, 1821: Achatinidae) in India

Roshmi Rekha Sarma  1   2 , Madhushree Munsi  1   2 , Aravind Neelavara Ananthram  1
Affiliations

Effect of Climate Change on Invasion Risk of Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica Férussac, 1821: Achatinidae) in India

Roshmi Rekha Sarma et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

The Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica) is considered to be one the world's 100 worst invasive alien species. The snail has an impact on native biodiversity, and on agricultural and horticultural crops. In India, it is known to feed on more than fifty species of native plants and agricultural crops and also outcompetes the native snails. It was introduced into India in 1847 and since then it has spread all across the country. In this paper, we use ecological niche modeling (ENM) to assess the distribution pattern of Giant African Snail (GAS) under different climate change scenarios. The niche modeling results indicate that under the current climate scenario, Eastern India, peninsular India and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are at high risk of invasion. The three different future climate scenarios show that there is no significant change in the geographical distribution of invasion prone areas. However, certain currently invaded areas will be more prone to invasion in the future. These regions include parts of Bihar, Southern Karnataka, parts of Gujarat and Assam. The Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep Islands are highly vulnerable to invasion under changed climate. The Central Indian region is at low risk due to high temperature and low rainfall. An understanding of the invasion pattern can help in better management of this invasive species and also in formulating policies for its control.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Potential distribution of A.fulica under current, and three climate change scenario (RCP 4.5, 6.0 and 8.0) a) for mainland India and b) Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Legend: Blue to red colour indicates unsuitable to highly suitable areas
Fig 2
Fig 2. Percent difference in the area of different suitability category between RCP 4.5, RCP and 6.0 and RCP 8.0 and current scenario for A.fulica.
Fig 3
Fig 3
a) Occurrence of A.fulica in different months of the year (n = 158) with min and max temperature; b) Occurrence of A.fulica in different months of the year (n = 158) with average rainfall.
Fig 4
Fig 4. Percent number of records of A.fulica invasion along the altitudinal gradient.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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