Garden Snail Predatory Insects' Modus Operandi Under Laboratory Conditions.

Abstract

Heliciculture farms are susceptible to significant biotic issues that can impact snail breeding, among them, the entomofauna predation of snails. Predatory insects can cause damage to snail shells during predation, and sometimes, the specific type of damage may be characteristic of certain insect families or species. Under laboratory conditions, we analysed the predatory activity of the species <i>Silpha tristis</i> Illiger, 1798 (Coleoptera: Silphidae), <i>Ocypus olens</i> (Müller, 1764) (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), <i>Carabus</i> (<i>Macrothorax</i>) <i>morbillosus constantinus</i> Kraatz, 1899 (Coleoptera: Carabidae), and <i>Lampyris sardiniae</i> Geisthardt, 1987 (Coleoptera: Lampyridae) against the gastropod <i>Cornu aspersum</i> (Müller, 1774) reared on snail farms located in the Sardinian region. The adult and larval stages of each species were tested, except for <i>L. sardiniae</i>, as only the larval stage preys upon snails. This study showed that among all of the species considered, only two insects were able to damage the shell of <i>C. aspersum: C. morbillosus constantinus</i> and <i>O.olens</i>. This may prove valuable in <i>C. aspersum</i> breeding for the recognition of specific lesions, even in the absence of the predator.