Snails are known
to escape from enclosures that are not properly protected or covered. It
therefore becomes imperative that snail houses should be protected to prevent
the snails from escaping and be predator free. The
housing for raising snails varies with purpose. However, it could be made of wooden
materials, wire mesh or even local materials whether outdoor or indoor.
Depending on the size of the farm, cages or hitch boxes, trench pens, used
types local baskets, movable pens and mini paddock are used to prevent snails
from escaping.
The cage should not be exposed to direct sunlight as this can
raise the temperature of the enclosed container to injurious levels. However,
they should be exposed to normal day/night cycle (Akinnusi, 2002) where cage
boxes are used the cover should be meshed to allow spraying of water without
having to open the box. No matter the type of housing, the habitat of snails
must be taken into shade as snails like hiding places. When snails are raised
indoors under controlled environmental factors favouring production must be
provided. The housing must be provided
with devices for measuring humidity
(hygrometer), temperature (thermometer),
soil moisture and light (in-foot candles) weighing balance, soil testing kit, magnifying glass and
watering cans.
HOUSING
SYSTEM
There
are three main housing system for rearing snails namely extensive, semi
-intensive and intensive system.
Extensive
system:
This type of system is essentially good in the open parks/gardens. The snails
are reared in their natural habitat except that choice plants are planted and
park or fenced gardens are provided to avoid the escaping of the snails.
Semi
intensive system:
This system combines both indoor and outdoor practices. The reproductive and
nursery stages are raised indoors while the growing period is outdoors. This system enables the farmer to grow and
produce snails all year round making them available to numerous consumers.
Intensive
system:
The system requires a high capital investment with modification of the
environment to suite what happens naturally during the park period to ensure
optimum reproduction and growth. This system ensures all year production of
snail and regular supply on demands.
Pest
and Diseases:
The natural enemies/ predators of
snails are members of many vertebrate groups such as beetles, cricket,
centipedes, snakes, toads, turtles and birds. Human also impose very serious
threat to snails through pollution and destruction of natural habitats of
snails which have led to extinction of a number of species. Cannibalism among
hatching (first snails that hatch) is also common. These young snails gather up
the shells of their eggs which give them the much needed calcium for building
their own shells, after which they may begin to eat the unhatched eggs.
Parasites, nematodes, trematodes,
fungi and anthropods may equally attack snails. Such problem occurs as a result
of over crowding, pseudomonas acruginosa causes intestinal infections that can
spread rapidly in over crowded pens, where it attacks egg clutches preventing
them from hatching.
Control
is not difficult in semi intensive and intensive systems. Once there is
infection of fungi, the egg can not be redeemed, all that could be done is to
burn and dispose the soil where the eggs are laid (Akinnusi, 2002).
OTHER POSTS ON AGRICULTURE
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