Effects of three leafy vegetables on the growth performance of Giant African Snail Achatina (Lissachatina) fulica

Abstract

This present research was performed to evaluate the effects of three leafy vegetable diets [bitter leaf ( Vernonia amygdalina ), fluted pumpkin leaf ( Telfairia occidentalis ) and pawpaw leaf ( Carica papaya )] on the growth performance of Giant African Snail ( Achatina fulica ). A total of ninety (90) A. fulica were used for the study. Thirty (30) snails each were subjected to three different dietary treatments in three replicates of 10 snails per replicate and fed with the fresh leaves of these vegetables over a period of 12 weeks. Results obtained recorded no significant differences ( P  > 0.05) in terms of weight gain, shell length, shell circumference and shell thickness. On the whole, A. fulica fed on T. occidentalis leaf performed better in terms of mean weight gain when compared with those fed on V. amygdalina and C. papaya leaves . Conversely, snails fed on C. papaya leaf had the best mean shell length gain, mean shell circumference and mean shell thickness when compared with those fed on V. amygdalina and T. occidentalis leaves. The study clearly showed that the tested vegetables can be successfully utilised as diets for rearing of A. fulica . For farmers to achieve optimum productivity, Telfairia occidentalis and Carica papaya leaves are recommended in the dietary menus of snails while bitter leaf can successfully serve as an alternative to the other leaves.