Baseline Information on Golden Apple Snail Damage and Management Practices in Rice Farmers` Fields in Argentina

Nestor J. Cazzaniga

Universidad Nacional del Sur
Departamento de Biología
Bioquímica y Farmacia. San Juan 670
(8000) Bahía Blanca, Argentina
E-mail: ficazzan@criba.edu.ar

1. Area under rice production (ha. and %)

Summer 2000/2001. Source: Sistema Integrado de Información Agropecuaria,
Secretaría de Agricultura, Ganadería y Pesca de la Nación, Argentina.

2. Extent of damage by golden kuhol (ha)

Negligible. Although apple snails are widespread and abundant all over the rice producing area in Argentina, they are not reported as a rice pest, neither in agronomical journals, nor by official institutions (e.g., INTA, National Institute for Farming Technology, Argentina), nor at Internet specific sites
(e.g.http://www.e-campo.com, http://arroz.com/americalatina/argentina, http://viarural.com.ar/agricultura/arroz).

3. Please list various methods adopted by rice farmers to control golden kuhol in the following order (most popular to least preferred):

Chemical control (only one farmer asked INTA for technical advice).

4. Please list chemicals (pesticides) used for golden kuhol in the following order (most popular to least preferred):

Copper sulphate

5. Farmers` criteria for the choice of a chemical:

Availability and low cost.

6. Utilization of golden kuhol by rice farmers (%) for:

None.

7. Brief description of any completed study or on-going farm trails/ basic/ applied research activities in the region by Department of Agriculture/ universities / chemical companies/ non-governmental personnel (Please note it can be any study: applied/ basic/extension-based/ livelihood projects, etc)

There are no projects specifically dealing with apple snails as a rice pest in Argentina.

Some University groups conduct continuous basic research on Pomacea snails:

1. Universidad Nacional del Sur, Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia. San Juan 670, (8000) Bahía Blanca, Argentina: Drs. Nestor J. Cazzaniga (ficazzan@criba.edu.ar), Alejandra L. Estebenet (estebene@criba.edu.ar), and Pablo R. Martín (pmartin@criba.edu.ar).
   Taxonomy and variability of Pomacea canaliculata, distribution, population ecology.
2. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Cátedra de Fisiología Normal. PO Box 33, (5500) Mendoza, Argentina: Drs. Alfredo Castro Vázquez (acv@fcm.uncu.edu.ar), and Israel A. Vega (ivega@fcm.uncu.edu.ar).
   Reproductive physiology and behaviour; endosymbionts.
3. Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo: Drs. Cristina Damborenea (cdamb@way.com.ar).
   Parasites.
4. Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas (INIBIOLP). Calles 60 y 120, (1900) La Plata, Argentina: Drs. Ricardo J. Pollero (pollero@atlas.med.unlp.edu.ar) and Horacio Heras (h-heras@atlas.med.unlp.edu.ar).
   Biochemistry and physiology of the development.
5. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo, and Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia: Drs. Beatriz Winik (lamenoa@unt.edu.ar), and Marta Catalán (lamenoa@unt.edu.ar).
   Histology and ultrastructure of the genital system.

An integrated programme of weeding drainage channels in southern Buenos Aires province included the use of Pomacea canaliculata as a biological control agent some 25 years ago (Cazzaniga, 1981b, 1983; Cazzaniga & Estebenet, 1985; Fernández et al., 1987, 1989). These channels are in a semiarid area, where it is not possible to cultivate neither rice nor any other aquatic crop.

Dr. Alfredo Castro-Vázquez made some informal trials of using P. canaliculata as fertilizer of irrigation water on a farm in Mendoza (Argentina) (A. Castro-Vázquez, pers. comm.).

8. Distribution of golden apple snail in your country as of present.

Pomacea canaliculata is authochthonous in Argentina, covering an area of about one million square kilometers to the east of the 62o W meridian; only between 24o to 34o S the species advances to the West, up to about 500 m above sea level (Cazzaniga, 1987a, b); some populations live above this limit (A. Casstro-Vázquez, pers. comm.).

http://www.applesnail.net