Bad News For Nigerians Exporting Snails

U.S. customs inspectors at Los Angeles International Airport seized a shipment of several dozen live giant African snails, considered a delicacy in Nigeria but also voracious pests that can eat paint and stucco off houses, officials said yesterday.

Weighing nearly 2 pounds and measuring about 6 inches in length, the 67 snails arrived from Lagos, Nigeria, on July 1 in two plastic baskets with paperwork describing them as being for human consumption, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency said
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The mollusks appeared to be a personal shipment and were marked as destined for an address in San Dimas, about 30 miles east of Los Angeles, agency spokeswoman Lee Harty said.

No attempt was made to conceal or smuggle the snails, she said. But the creatures are prohibited from entry because they are deemed a highly invasive pest, the agency said.

The giant snails can consume more than 500 types of plants and will even munch on the exterior of homes. They also can carry several parasites harmful to humans, including one that can lead to meningitis, Harty said.

The snails eventually were incinerated.