Morphological and Molecular Characterization of the Invasive Pestiferous Land Snail Macrochlamys indica Godwin-Austen, 1883 (Gastropoda: Ariophantidae) from Saudi Arabia

Yasser Abobakr (), Ali S. Al-Sarar, Ali A. Alzabib and Amgad A. Saleh
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Yasser Abobakr: Department of Plant Protection, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Ali S. Al-Sarar: Department of Plant Protection, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Ali A. Alzabib: Department of Plant Protection, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Amgad A. Saleh: Department of Plant Protection, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia

Agriculture, 2022, vol. 12, issue 11, 1-14

Abstract: Many terrestrial gastropod species have been dispersed as a result of anthropogenic activities and have adapted to new habitats where they are considered as alien or invasive species. Several synanthropic gastropods are invasive in urban and agricultural environments worldwide. In Saudi Arabia, increased human activities have accelerated the introduction of terrestrial gastropod species, increasing the need to study its gastropod fauna. Our preliminary survey disclosed the presence of ariophantid snails in a number of agricultural nurseries. Based on morphological features of shell, body, and reproductive system, we report the first record of Macrochlamys indica from Saudi Arabia. The phylogenetic analysis obtained from DNA sequences of the mitochondrial COI and 16S regions confirmed the identity of M. indica . One third of the investigated nurseries were infested with this snail, however, we did not find any specimens of M. indica in natural habitats or open agricultural fields. The snail-infested nurseries were distributed all over Saudi Arabia. The occurrence of one haplotype of partial mitochondrial COI sequence from these nurseries suggests that the introduction of M. indica is likely very recent. Based on the obtained results, it is recommended that control measurements must be implemented in order to eradicate or at least restrict the dissemination of M. indica from nurseries to natural habitats or agricultural fields.

Keywords: terrestrial snails; Macrochlamys indica; invasive species; COI; 16S (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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