Giant land snail slime threatens human health, says Swiss study

Social media networks are full of pictures of people putting snails on their skin and faces without realising the risks this poses to their health, say the researchers. Keystone / Scott Burton

The first worldwide study of the giant land snail, which has become a popular pet, has revealed that the invasive species poses a serious threat to human health. The researchers from the University of Lausanne are calling for restrictions on the purchase of land snails as pets.

Growing to over 20 centimetres in length, the giant land snail is far from harmless beneath its “friendly” gastropod exterior.

+ How Switzerland is battling invasive species

“Social networks are full of photos of people putting the animal in contact with their skin, or even their mouth. The mollusk’s slime is supposed to be beneficial for the epidermis, when in fact it is a vector for diseases such as rat lungworm, which can cause a form of meningitis in humans,” warns Cleo Bertelsmeier, associate professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the Faculty of Biology and Medicine of the University of Lausanne (UNIL), quoted in a press release on Thursday.

Consumption of these invertebrates is also strongly discouraged, adds the director of the study published last Tuesday in the journal “Parasites & Vectors”. Considered a particularly problematic invasive species, the giant land snail, native to East Africa, is voracious and reproduces very quickly, posing a threat to agricultural areas and biodiversity.

Quantifying the risks

The Lausanne-based research group has carried out the first worldwide study to simultaneously quantify the risks of invasion and disease transmission associated with trading this species as a pet. The biologists used data from social networks to establish a global map of the areas where the animal is found in captivity, and to assess the at-risk behaviours of individuals.

“When visiting social networks, we quickly realised that there are many owners of giant pet snails (and they are mainly European), and that many don’t seem to be aware of the health risks to which they expose themselves, or their children, when they handle these snails, for example by putting them on their face,” comments Jérôme Gippet, postdoctoral fellow in Bertelsmeier’s team and lead author of the article.

There is an urgent need to raise public awareness of the health risks associated with the giant land snail, both in tropical countries and in Europe. Its trade and possession must be regulated at international level, the researchers conclude.

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