గ్లోబల్ జర్నల్ ఆఫ్ బయాలజీ, అగ్రికల్చర్ & హెల్త్ సైన్సెస్

నైరూప్య

EFFECT OF MICRO-HABITAT ON THE EGG HATCHABILITY AND HATCHLING GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF THE GIANT AFRICAN LAND SNAIL

AMATA, I.A.

The effect of selected micro-habitats on the egg hatchability and hatchling growth performance of the Giant African land snail Archachatina marginata was investigated in an experiment conducted in the Research and Teaching Farm of the Delta State University Asaba Campus, Delta State Nigeria. The experiment was conducted over a period of six months. Five different micro-habitats were selected. These include river sand, top soil, sawdust, mud and decayed vegetation. Parameters measured include weight of eggs, length of eggs and percentage hatchability. Bi-weekly variation in hatchling weights and average weight gain over a period of ten weeks was also recorded. Significant differences between the groups were observed for egg weight and egg length, with sawdust, mud and decayed vegetation recording higher values than top soil and river sand. Post hoc tests revealed 100% hatchability for eggs placed in top soil and river sand, 95% hatchability for eggs placed in mud and decayed vegetation and 71% hatchability for eggs placed in sawdust. Results obtained for hatchling weights indicate bi-weekly significant differences between the groups. Results obtained from the experiment indicate that top soil and river sand are suitable micro-habitats for the hatching of snail eggs, while sawdust is a suitable medium for subsequent growth of the hatchlings.