EFSA’s Panel on Plant Health was asked to deliver a statement to clarify the current scientific knowledge regarding the identity of the apple snails. Current methods of identification imply high uncertainty if risk reduction options are applied at the Pomacea single species level.
A Spanish pest risk analysis identifies important plant health risks connected to several species.
The Panel clarifies that risk reduction options should not be targeted to single species of the genus Pomacea considering:
(i) the dynamical situation in the current study on the systematics of the Ampullariidae species and the genus Pomacea in particular;
(ii) the uncertainties and the possible unexpected evolution of the invasive potential of species of Pomacea other than P. insularum and P. canaliculata;
(iii) the poor knowledge on the trophic habits of many species of the genus Pomacea, with possible overlaps in the trophic niche (macrophytes);
(iv) the high uncertainty on the identification of the different Pomacea species.