Golden Apple Snail

Symptom

In rice the first symptom of damage by GAS is a reduced plant stand - missing hills and floating cut leaves on the water surface. GAS cut the base of the young seedlings. The tillers are cut first and then the leaves and culums are consumed under water. In general, the younger the seedlings the more susceptible are they to snail, and the deeper the water level, the greater the damage. Direct seeding rice is the most vulnerable to snail damage. At a deeper water level, the 40 day-old seedlings become susceptible to the pest when the upper tender tissues are submerged in water. The GAS is destructive to rice seedlings for as long as water is not limiting. Thus water is the most important factor for determining the extent of damage.