ABSTRACT
This experiment was conducted to assess the performance of Giant African land snail (Archachatina marginata). Fed with graded levels of poultry manure. 40 adults snails were divided into 2 units (A & B) according to their weight. Snails in each unit were fed with pawpaw leaves for 8weeks weights were taken on a weekly basis and data were collected and subjected to one way analysis of Variance ANOVA.
The result showed that poultry manure gave the highest weight among the different feeding materials with the snails increasing from an initial weight of 2.17kg to a final weight of 2.48kg. For while snails fed with pawpaw leaves has an initial weight of 2.00kg to a final weight of 2.38kg.
Sundried poultry manure was the better feed in this study and is hereby recommended to farmers for feeding snails.
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Generally snails are animals of the numerous as terrestrial or fresh water gastropod mollusk with spirally coiled shells especially those in the family of helicidae.
It belong to the kingdom- Animalia, phylum-mollusca, class- Gastropoda, sub- class- pulmonata order- stylommatophora, family-Helidae and Acatinidae.
Mollusks usually are sea animal such as the limpet. The Whelk is a carnivorous animal that live in shell. It is far smaller than the whelk and sometime is also used as food. The limpet is a sea are water animals otherwise called shell fish that holds tightly on to the work where it live-some are other plant eating creatures or animals with soft bodies no limbs and usually have shells on their back that move slowly on land, or are some king of soft bodied small crawling animals with coiled shell which have silvery or salivary trail as they move along (Ogunbiyi 1997).
The foregoing definition shows that the naturals habitats of snails are two (2) therefore snails are classified in two Viz. The water or sea snails and the land snails that are our major concern.
The Yoruba people of the south western Nigeria make rectories the edible lands snails but fail to avail themselves of the advantage1s of having the animals found all over the place especially during the raining spell of the years, talk less of multiplying them.
Snails are a special delicacy of the elites who frequent hotel to satisfy themselves. Those of them who do not patronize hotels, buy snails either the scrabble who look for the farmers who founds them in the bush or farmland in the process of cultivation.
The Hausa of Northern Nigeria who are hired to prepare virgin forest for plantation do not eat snails at all therefore if any of them is lucky enough to find snails in the course of cleaning or slashing the bush such finds are seen as extra money making by selling the snails at cheap price to those whose favorite dish is snails eating. Even when our Yoruba farmers eat snails the nutritional benefits are unknown to them what is known to them is that the mucus of a snail is good for stopping the excessive flow of blood resulting from circumcision of children .
Of late snail consumption is known to ease periodic attack or crisis of hypertension and diabetes which are very rampart among the urban or city dwellers or the affluent. Scrambler and farmers know this and sell snails at relatively high price to whoever might opt for snails eating regardless of circumstances still people do not give a dawn to snails procreation neither are they aware of its marketability beyond the shore of Nigeria (Sangodoyin 1989).
A snails has the body, shell, foot, head and mouth. It gas horny tooth- bearing trips on the tongue used for rasping its food. These are called RADULAE it has two pairs of tentacles which are any of various elongated flexible organs that occur near the mouth also used for feeding or grasping. It has visceral messier the large internal organs of the body collectively, especially those in the adnominal cavity or system (Bollough 1981)
A snails like any other animal has blood bluish instead or reddish and other characteristics of living things generally. A snail is an hermaphrodite an invertebrate animal that has two opposite forces or qualities combined together i.e it has male and female reproductive organs. Thus, having dual characteristics and genital tissue but cannot produce eggs without having a type of courtship with a compatible partner in essence, pair of compatible snails has simultaneous reciprocal exchange of sperm of develop the embryo because a snails cannot fertilize itself (Alexander 1992).
It is no exaggeration saying that the edible land snail is a great gift to the tropical rain forest zones of the world especially the African sub-region perhaps it is speculative, and perhaps not that the Chinese who are exporters of snails got their root stockfrom Nigeria (yoloye 1998).
There are four species of eatable land snail, according to the experts (Imevbore 1998).
These are:
i. Achatina achatina
ii. Archachatina marginata
iii. Achating fulica
iv. limicolaria spp
Each of these species has local names Archachatina marginata:- this is bigger than any species of land snails. Some call it “African Giant snail” of exaggeration while some call it the “Big black snail” The shell is multicolour, black, brown. Dotted and height yellowish sports, Other wise natural camouflage which hides land snails from their enemies. It has broad tip. The local people prefer Arxhachatina marginata to all other species just because of its big size.
Achatina achatina: Is next in size, it has wavy black likes with light yellowish or brownish colour in between. At the right sides of the face is red stripe which is white in the Archachatina marginata. The meaty is soft and palatable to international taste. The Achatina achatina has a pointed tip and has more alterative look than all other species of
Snails.
Achatina fulica: It is a smaller stunted body. It is next to Achatina achatina in size with white or black feature of flesh in the shell.
Limicolaria spp: It is also called “GARDEN SNALL” it is commonly found in the garden clasping plant and twigs. It is the smallest of all eatable snails.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The project is interest in finding solution to performance of snails fed graded levels of poultry manire.
i. An alternative means of compounding feed for the snails.
ii. Problems of pest and predators: frogs toad and lizards.
iii. Scarcity of edible leaves and fruits.
iv. Lack of proper managerial principles of snail production have ruined many snail production units with disease out break. Which claim the lives of many snails.
v. Time factor
vi. Financial constraint
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY.
The general objective of this study is to the performance of snail with graded level of poultry manure.
i. To determine the best feed that is good for rapid growth of the snail.
ii. To determine the feed that will be most appropriate for snails.
iii. To find out the influence of management on the efficiency of snail management.
1.4 DELIMINATION OF THE STUDY.
The study is limited to the Agricultural Education, Department of the Federal College of education, Abeokuta Ogun state.
The snailery unit of the college was used for this research.
It is therefore important the environment in which the research work was carried is favourable and conducive Generalization can be made all over results obtained.
1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The project work provides information like the following which can help people in the society that engage in snail business.
i. It is known that snails are one of the major animal sources of protein for human diet.
ii. It recommends to the snail farmers the methods of rearing and keeping snails for maximum profit.
iii. It provides information on snails that are fed with concentrates and pawpaw leaves.
iv. It provides information on the snails that are fed with concentrates.