How An Invasive Snail May Save An Endangered Bird

What happened when one of nature's pickiest eaters met a huge, extremely adaptable snail? Well, it might be the start of evolution in action.
Subscribe to the pin club here: store.dftba.com/collections/b...
This month's pin is designed by Monica Knighton. You can find out more about her and her work here: monicalknighton.com/
You can cancel any time by emailing [e-mail]
Host: Sarah Suta (she/her)
Follow us on socials:
Twitter: / bizarrebeasts
Instagram: / bizarrebeastsshow
Facebook: / bizarrebeastsshow
#BizarreBeasts #SnailKites #snails #kites #invasivespecies
-----
Sources:
www.saj.usace.army.mil/Portal...
ecoevocommunity.nature.com/po...
www.archbold-station.org/docu...
www.millerlab.net/uploads/5/0/...
academic.oup.com/condor/artic...
www.sciencedirect.com/science...
www.audubon.org/field-guide/b...
academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/a...
link.springer.com/article/10....
fl.audubon.org/birds/snail-kite
wildlife.org/endangered-snail...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin%...
www.floridastateparks.org/lea...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ampulla...
------
Images:
tinyurl.com/2p8t2tx4
tinyurl.com/2p867d2k
tinyurl.com/2p8wyzdy
tinyurl.com/2ewc4ruh
tinyurl.com/2p8uc4nm
tinyurl.com/33nbkyzn
tinyurl.com/58737xw3
tinyurl.com/2p8p2cj6
tinyurl.com/446cajpj
• Snail Kite at Brinson...
• Taguato Jatyta - Rostr...
tinyurl.com/453hemkj
tinyurl.com/2p97p22c
tinyurl.com/2pbx9nsd
tinyurl.com/2p9sr5nv
tinyurl.com/yckc5ep6
tinyurl.com/52xdv6rh
tinyurl.com/mutb8pea
tinyurl.com/399bnpvx
tinyurl.com/22v3vfp6
tinyurl.com/m7sydnmt
tinyurl.com/2p95be52
tinyurl.com/v3fce5sw
tinyurl.com/45k7y5tk
tinyurl.com/6de48fhc
tinyurl.com/2p8t6s3b
tinyurl.com/2p9ffs6k
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
tinyurl.com/2p8edzwy
tinyurl.com/48ctezrd
tinyurl.com/2fpcf2y3
www.invasive.org/browse/detai...
www.invasive.org/browse/detai...
bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com...
/ bud97q9jqeu
bmcecolevol.biomedcentral.com...
tinyurl.com/2p97p22c
tinyurl.com/54kvtj5d
• Snail Kite at Brinson...
tinyurl.com/yk68t7p9
• Apple Snail (Pomacea m...
www.eurekalert.org/multimedia...
tinyurl.com/mt738ntv
tinyurl.com/2h323r8k
tinyurl.com/2p8t6s3b
tinyurl.com/2u5vaebp
tinyurl.com/6evnu929
journals.plos.org/plosone/art...
tinyurl.com/48ctezrd

[@zJoriz]

It's happy days when an invasive species gets cleaned out by an endangered species. I just hope the snails won't evolve to be toxic or so.

[@theangrysuchomimus5163]

Probably the kites would enter an evolutionary arms race with them becoming resistant to the toxins.

[@zJoriz]

@@theangrysuchomimus5163 Next step: TOXIC KITES

[@minhducnguyen9276]

Apple snails survive by breeding faster than predators can eat them. They don't have a need for poison as poison take time and energy to produce which reduces their reproduction rate. Apple snails are also edible that's one of the reason why they were introduced in Asia. Unfortunately, just like many other invasive species, people still preferred to eat the native species and left them alone instead.

[@jamessparkman6604]

Well here’s one way to make sure they never become toxic get rid of poisonous genes That sounds

[@eshiffer]

I'm wondering if any birds will start to evolve to catch more Spotted Lanternflies.

[@shadowscribe]

Us: Oh no! These invasive giant snails are a getting out of control! Snail Kites: You go, I got this.

[@kenneth9874]

Believe me, they don't have it, those snails are an ecological disaster

[@manderly109]

@@kenneth9874 at least there’s a bright side!

[@kenneth9874]

@@manderly109 not too bright

[@ten-hx2xi]

@@kenneth9874ik you feel like you had to comment this, but how does this help? i think if you asked yourself this you maybe you would be happier :) up to you

[@franciscorosa1498]

I hope the snail kite populations are able to increase even more, it's cool how an invasive harmful organism can be helpful to some

[@biokosmos]

you have video about the Abyssinian ground hornbill? I love him

[@jamessparkman6604]

@@biokosmos hey for what it’s worth these snail kites if they keep multiplying eradicating, the apple snail will get much easier

[@jamessparkman6604]

I think I know where to boost the snail kite numbers, even further getting rid of more pythons

[@ravick007]

Both animals are native here where I live (South Brazil). It was a surprise to see the Mystery Snail as a threat to the Snail Kite because here they hunt almost exclusively this species of snail. You can tell where these birds live by the dead shells they let on the shores. By the way, we call them 'gavião caramujeiro' (Hawk that fishes snails) and 'caramujo maçã' (Apple snail). :D

[@NinaDmytraczenko]

It was a delight learning about these two animals, as I'd never heard of them despite being Brazilian as well. I live in a city in SP state, in an area that doesn't have a significant population of either. My local kite is Gaviãozinho:)

[@ravick007]

The place where I use to see them more frequently is at the wetlands areas of the restinga vegetation in the city of Laguna, SC. In wetlands of very near cities (such as Jaguaruna), where the Mystery Snails are absent, the kites are nowhere to be found. Even if there are other species of snails there (planorbid snails, etc). That is why I got so surprised to see these snails as a threat in the video. Here, they seem to be necessary for the birds to live.

[@comfortablynumb9342]

Cool. I could learn Portuguese pretty easily, I speak Spanish fluently and I understand lots of Portuguese when I read it. It sounds like Spanish and French mixed to me. I'd love to study a bit and visit Brazil, and Portugal too. I lived in Costa Rica for 9 years and I loved it. I'm sure Brazil would be similar.

[@skrubknight884]

Really interesting video! Just one note though, in the aquarium trade, typically the species sold and labelled as the Mystery Snail usually is just the species Pomacea Bridgesii. This species is a fair bit smaller than its other apple snail cousins, about 2 inches, and notably does not usually choose to eat live plants, instead feeding mostly on algae and decaying plant and animal matter. This is actually how you can tell that someone received a different apple snail from a pet store rather than a mystery snail if they start eating aquarium plants. However plenty of other apple snails circulate in the trade and this was definitely how they ended up as invasive species. Being mislabeled as Mysteries here and there probably contributes to this a lot, as irresponsible people are tempted to just toss out a mistakenly sold apple snail after it grows larger than expected and starts eating expensive aquarium plants.

[@hefoxed]

Just commented about this, though not to this detailed. Googled confirmed my/your information. Trade is so good at mislabeling plants and creatures and causing so much confusion on naming

[@skrubknight884]

@@hefoxed yeah. i feel like pet stores share the biggest slice of blame. breeders and vendors know what they are selling, but pet store employees at best are given the bare minimum of info and training, so mixups, lack of cataloging, or even deliberately false information ends up resulting in poor choices of animals being sent to homes, especially with people searching for algae eating animals. on the aquariums subreddit, i once saw a post on how a person was sold a Marine File Snake as an algae eater of all things, not to mention all the plecos that grow to gargantuan sizes. though tbf in the snail's case i can somewhat see why mixups are so common. most of the time apple snails all look and act pretty similar up until you see a size difference as adults.

[@NinaDmytraczenko]

Thanks for explaining it further!

[@blackmoonfox8914]

+

[@zJoriz]

@@skrubknight884 Getting well-informed is a challenge, yeah. My sister bought a ferret pup once, but it turned out to be a polecat/ferret hybrid, which grows much larger and is more agressive, half wild basically. Luckily, she found someone willing to take it off her hands, but not before it ruined the health and confidence of her other, normal-sized ferret.

[@darkdragoness5]

It's happening with cane toads in Australia too, native animals have been learning how to get around the poison and making it a meal. The ibis, although not endangered, has even figured out how to eat the entire toad, by shaking the toad so it releases its poison and washing it off in water. Other native birds have been observed learning from this.

[@jeffcusack7612]

As a snail enthusiast, I really appreciated all the “foot” puns lol

[@DeinosDinos]

Found it very difficult to 'stomach' those 'foot' puns to be honest.

[@dracodracarys2339]

Can you do huia birds next? They're a now sadly extinct New Zealand bird that was remarkable for the male and female having different beaks and eating different diets

[@comfortablynumb9342]

I'm interested too! As an American I've never heard of those birds. Sounds neat.

[@kevinlucero2817]

This is pretty much the first time I’ve ever heard of a invasive species for once been beneficial to a native species.

[@kenneth9874]

They're damn sure a disaster for everything else

[@obambagaming1467]

They are still dangerous. The birds alone can't eat all the snails.

[@Jake-zk3eb]

Once they become beneficial, they stop being invasive, they are now just introduced species.

[@Kain59242]

Also, a small beak still allows it to eat into a larger snail. It just has to figure out how to kill them. finding them is easier as well because the snail is larger.

[@kennyholmes5196]

the kites get more out of the larger snails, too.

[@zJoriz]

I'd think a larger snail can retreat further into its shell. Would guess that's what the larger beak is handy for.

[@brandondavidson4085]

Phenotypic plasticity is such an incredible thing to see. It's why you have groups of the exact same species who have vastly different body plans. Domesticated animals like dogs, cats, horses, and pigs are actually a good example of this, because humans specifically selected for different physical traits, but genetically all the "breeds" are part of the same species (canis familiaris, felis catus, equus ferus caballus, and sus domestica). Even we humans have the same thing, albeit on a smaller scale usually!

[@dewinmoonl]

The birds were fully equipped to change their beak size on a dime. They probably did just that, multiple times, before humans ever existed, changing their beak size rapidly depending on the local snail population

[@silence-humility-calmness]

could be its not even evolution and just part of growing bigger as a result of plenty food

[@jordyb57]

That’s not how it works

[@DarshanBhambhani]

Golden apple snail: I have discovered a niche in this habitat I invaded Snail kite rapidly evolving: lol no

[@dotdenier]

I wonder if people could start teaching wild crows to pick up the snails and drop them on the pavement like they would do with a walnut

[@justacat2318]

*Task Failed Successfully*

[@gunjfur8633]

I really like the drawing of the bird, it reminds me of the eagle on the cactus holding a snake on the Mexican flag

[@meganofsherwood3665]

Nothing to do with the kites or snails, but as a young professional woman trying to figure out what "business professional" is & isn't, I just have to comment on how well Sarah pulled a lace-patterened dress, steampunk-esque corset-style belt, black jacket and again steampunk-esque necklace together and made them look so incredibly professional!! The bizarre beasts folks should give lessons!!

[@BlackReshiram]

woah the snail kites have absolutely beautiful red eyes.... love them. hope these snails can save them.

[@sggy_nOodls]

please please PLEASE do an episode on hyenas! theyve been my single favorite animal since i was 7 and they need to stop being recognized as dirty evil scavengers. also, there are a LOT of... questionable descisions nature made with them

[@lucassweeney1857]

Hey can you guys do the shapeshifting frogs at some point? Please. I love your guys content.

[@NewMessage]

Seconded!

[@tengonadacluewhatsgutsprec1419]

Shape shifting frogs??? We def need a video on those!

[@sonorasgirl]

Whaaaaaat

[@NinaDmytraczenko]

I do not know what these shape shifting frogs are, but definitely need to!!! Bizarre Beasts, please help us out!

[@hefoxed]

I believe there is an inaccuracy, the mystery snail in the aquarium trade is an apple snail but not the big invasive apple snails. Googled to confirm, there is an article on aquatic Eden "apple snail vs mystery snail" that goes into this into further details. I could be wrong, but I believe that is also why the very invasive types of apples snails are banned whereas mystery snails being less invasive is allowed (location dependent)

[@bigbearddahuzi1036]

Apple snails and Mystery snails are not the same snail, but they did used to import the apple snail. It is only after they were found to be so invasive that apple snails took a dive in popularity in the aquarium industry. Where I live they are not even available anymore

[@hefoxed]

@@bigbearddahuzi1036 Via wiki "Pomacea bridgesii, common names the spike-topped apple snail or mystery snail, is a South American species of freshwater snail with gills and an operculum" "Ampullariidae, commonly known as the apple snails" Apple snails refers to the family "Ampullariidae", Pomacea is a genus below it Mystery snails are a type of apple snail, just not the invasive type -- there's another discussion going further into this in the comments with better info

[@emmao6578]

@@hefoxed Isn't it likely she's referring to a situation where animals are mis-sold as the wrong species either deliberately for extra profit or mistakenly because of lack of knowledge and the species being so similar

[@WaterspoutsOfTheDeep]

@@bigbearddahuzi1036 I miss apple snails some of them were pretty cool. I haven't seen any in forever myself.

[@kenneth9874]

None of them should have ever been allowed in the country

[@audreymuzingo933]

People have even tried eating these snails, and you'd see why if you held one in your hand; they are SO huge and so easy to gather along the shoreline, it would seem they could be worthwhile as meat. --Especially down here on the Gulf Coast where it would fit right in with the French cuisine. But these are not escargot candidates, unfortunately, taste terrible and are full of parasites. I suspect that would not be the case if they were farmed, as it's undoubtedly the high portion of algae in their wild diets that gives them the 'rotten' taste, and parasites could be easily controlled in a captive rearing setup. But then, a farm doesn't incentivize wild harvesting, which is exactly where they need to be removed from.

[@skrubknight884]

sadly the parasite aspect is also why they can't even really be wild harvested for the pet trade. plenty of fish and reptiles eat snails, Puffer fish for one quite literally need a steady diet of them to keep their beaks filed down, but a lot of parasites can pass from snails to fish, and parasite medication is both expensive and as likely to kill the snails themselves.

[@audreymuzingo933]

@@skrubknight884 I've kept them with my fish, but only the mollies, killi's and other local wild fish that I caught in the same waters, so they probably had good resistance or tolerance at least. To be honest I'm pretty fond of the snails themselves. If you go to my account page and scroll down you can see some that I had just brought home from the lake, laying eggs on the inside of the big tank thing I was working on. I think it's titled "Snails-A-Layin" or something like that. And they hatched too, then boy howdy was I overrun with them --they grew so fast on expensive algae wafers and household veggie scraps, lol. I don't think I uploaded this but I remember making a video of a tennis ball size one wolfing down a big broccoli floret and farting loudly at the water surface. So yeah, they're really neat little buggers, er not-so-little, but so monstrously invasive. I did destroy mine eventually, of course.

[@tmmle7]

Does that include purging? Feeding snails carrots and corn starch could get rid of parasites.

[@DeRien8]

Anyone else remember the Wild Thornberries episode about the snail kites and apple snails? Loved the character that they framed as "creepy swamp witch" only to have her turn out misunderstood and helpful.

[@Bacopa68]

I see a couple of species of trapdoor snails in ditches here in Texas. I never see them in the local nearby creek. Because these are drainage ditches, they are empty a bunch of the time. The snails dig into the clay near the concrete dugouts under business driveways that retain water for flood control when things are too dry. Some years most snails don't make it and I get free shells. Other critter in the ditches is the local Gambusia. These mosquitofish love living in the concrete chambers in dry times because all mosquitos try to breed there.

[@ArawnOfAnnwn]

"I get free shells" - what're you collecting the shells for?

[@elizabethyow1165]

One of my friends is doing research in university about Apple snails in Texas

[@Bacopa68]

@@ArawnOfAnnwn Shells are cool.

[@ArawnOfAnnwn]

@@Bacopa68 Fair enough. :D

[@loganphelan3587]

It could be that the snail kites were suffering that much that they were all malnourished so they didn’t reach their full growth potential until they had an abundant food source

[@pamelapilling6996]

Thank you, once again for an amazing episode.

[@sonorasgirl]

Super cool! I used to work at my local zoo’s birds of prey program (we took care of birds that were too injured to go back to the wild) and did community education with them. I’ve had a soft spot for all BOP since

[@user-eh2jk6mf9s]

Fish and sharks in the Carribbean have started to get a taste for invasive lionfish

[@TomDestry]

An idea pulled straight from the air (this is KZbin comments after all) - if the species was suffering from food shortages, maybe all individuals were smaller than they were capable of being, given better nutrition. But after the snails had been around for a while one kite discovered a technique to get into the snails' shells, even with its standard beak. It grew larger from more food and taught it's peers/offspring. The young who learned this method grew more healthily and developed longer beaks, which made it even easier to eat the snails.

[@misanthropichumanist4782]

Seems a resonable speculation.

[@huletnadof313]

The larger species of apple snail, which is now invasive in Florida, has a range that overlaps much of the snail kite's range in Central America and South America. I wonder if the populations of snail kites in these areas have larger beaks compared to snail kite populations in Florida before the invasive apple snail species arrived.

[@transformerpro7489]

Love you Steve, but hearing Sarah’s voiceover and narration brightens my day every time I click on a Bizzare Beasts video.

[@stephencook8066]

There is a huge population of island apple snails in the barker reservoir west of Houston. I’d love for this to be a new habitat for these birds. It’s nothing less than an infestation.

[@brendanhoffmann8402]

I just ordered the first two sticker packs! I'd love to join the pin club one day but too many bills this week.

[@OpEditorial]

Florida is basically like a Roman gladiator's colloseum for introduced species, unwanted pets and escaped science experiments.

[@toprem4037]

6:37 - Somewhere Lamarck's ghost is feeling pretty good about itself.

[@Jebiwibiwabo]

as someone who lives in south Florida, the invasive apple snails are no joke, they're massive! (for snails) I've seen some get to be around baseball size, if not slightly larger.

[@sthui2866]

I’ve heard the same story with gobies and a species of water snake. Very cool how invasive species can help some.

[@finalmage6]

Not into fast food 😂 Classic

[@antonettesia9043]

Well that's certainly the first time I saw a snail laying eggs! Thanks Bizzare Beasts!

[@audreymuzingo933]

Go to my channel and you can see FIVE of them laying eggs simultaneously, up-close, these same huge apple snails. it's titled '5 snails a-laying'.

[@jamesharmer9293]

If you want to see evolution in action, then go to London and look at the pigeons. Over the last few decades, they've changed colour due to less pollution and more predation.

[@Exquailibur]

So basically big snails are too big for the birds, so the birds just get bigger to eats bigger snails.

[@emilklink9440]

Yes, thats why invasive hippos are a concern

[@Exquailibur]

​@@emilklink9440 Dunno what that has to do with snail kites, but Columbia feels that.

[@gliscornumber151]

I used to have one of these snails in my aquarium...I now realize I might have accidentally killed it. I didn't know they can just sit in their shells for weeks on end. I feel so bad 😭

[@LondonEevee]

Loved my last pin! Super cute 🥰

[@AJVD2123]

The island Apple snail is not a mystery snail. All mystery snails are apple snails (as it relates to shape, not species) but not all apple snails are mystery snails. The true mystery snail is P. bridgesii where as the island apple snail is p. maculata. It’s not common to get p. maculata any more in the trade as it is illegal for them to be transported across state lines.

[@aniruddhthakar1933]

Guys I love your content, keep it up 💕☺

[@CybranM]

3:06 poor turtle :'(

[@charliespinoza1966]

That’s freaking wild

[@deathsnitemaresinfullust2269]

I will watch and 👍 anything from the deep ocean on this channel. 😄👍

[@tom_7768]

I'm so happy for the snail kite

[@spencermiller2032]

Finally! We’re getting some use out of invasive species!

[@audreymuzingo933]

Yeah, people have even tried eating these snails, and you'd see why if you held one in your hand; they are SO huge and so easy to gather along the shoreline, it would seem they could be worthwhile as meat. --Especially down here on the Gulf Coast where it would fit right in with the French cuisine. But these are not escargot candidates, unfortunately, taste terrible and are full of parasites. I suspect that would not be the case if they were farmed, as it's undoubtedly the high portion of algae in their wild diets that gives them the 'rotten' taste, and parasites could be easily controlled in a captive rearing setup. But then, a farm doesn't incentivize wild harvesting, which is exactly where they need to be removed from.

[@kenneth9874]

Don't be ridiculous, those things are a plague to everything else

[@WanderTheNomad]

Nature seems to have a tendency to balance things out

[@aarav_sharma]

princess Leia hairstyle lol

[@Krankenwagen571]

Kon ?

[@triceratops2653]

Love it! Good job

[@brionfranks478]

I was just in the 'Glades near Parkland and saw both the eggs and snails also many empty shells

[@fenrirgg]

That snail lives in South America and the snail kites also live in South America 🤔 Snail kites are adapted to eat those snails, but in Florida they were adapting to local snails, the evolution probably was taking part before the invasive snail (developing a new smaller species of snail kite), with the invasive snail they probably are going back to what they are in South America, don't you think? I guess the abundance of big snails activated their original genes for South American survival.

[@vili638]

I'm so happy there's SO many foot jokes snuck in here!!!

[@windlessoriginals1150]

Thank you

[@saurabhjibhenkar4396]

Good information 👍

[@austinbutts3000]

2:00 hope you don't mind me appropriating that for my dad joke repertoire

[@NewMessage]

Like the time invasive earthworms vindicated all those early birds.

[@Nrex117]

Ah yes my favorite quote “The early bird evolves to take advantage of the abundant invasive worm”

[@Krankenwagen571]

Humans are invasive sp too

[@zackcorrell5746]

that turtle isnt too happy

[@BlackReaper0]

3:53 Almost looks like something out of Alien.

[@littleowl22778]

I hope to get a green or blue pin ^^ I got the black bonnet shark last time which was I wanted.

[@Guydude777]

Fascinating

[@markopolo3445]

I smile every time i snatch😉 your smarts & voice up on this show!!!😁

[@Zeno362]

7:30 RIP Mr. Turtle.

[@jamessparkman6604]

An invasive species saving an endangered one ironic but also satisfying because invasive species usually have a potential to wipe in danger species out but there are necessary exceptions particularly in this case

[@yeeturmcbeetur8197]

The damn French are being reborn as birds 😭

[@impendio]

I’m always surprised to see that these animals live in my country (by looking at the range maps) and i’ve never ever heard of them.

[@09Dragonite]

Ah, fascinating, so almost like exercising specific muscle groups to perform specific athletic functions over the course of a lifetime - except with beaks 😅

[@jimmy-jamesolivier-mccutch2126]

big beak energy

[@Oscar-gq4ro]

Epigenetics are neat, I just had to explain the concept in a weed group on Facebook.

[@fishyerik]

Fun fact: The island apple snails aren't fully grown when they hatch, in fact, then they're much smaller than newly hatched Florida apple snails. The idea that the eventually larger size of the island apple snail contributed significantly to a 80% population decrease in a few years seems, well, not very well though thru. And come on, how much did the average beak size increase, really? Anywhere close to the difference in "fully grown" Florida and Island apple snails? No, didn't think so. They claim the increase was approximately 1 SD (standard deviation), not to twice the normal size. For those who don't know, an increase of 1 SD where all values ar very similar to each other, as in this case, the change is very small, insignificant in cases like this, and possibly not even real, beaks are not that easy to measure that exact, especially with that shape. Increase in beak size actually happened or not, it can't explain extreme changes in population, if real, that increase represents in the ballpark of a few days of growth for the snail "in season".

[@mark6302]

badass looking bird

[@comfortablynumb9342]

Are the big snails edible for people? Because that's a possible solution for any invasive critters that could help. If they're tasty and someone can raise awareness there could be a market for invasive escargot.

[@johnlopez9014]

Big beak energy!

[@willieclark2256]

Paynes Prairie State Park in Gainesville Florida is a perfect place to see just this

[@dm_nimbus]

Did anyone here watch John Acorn? I remember he made a "What's the mystery about the mystery snail" song. At least I think it was him.

[@salt-emoji]

Ironic one of the fastest raptor species hunting some of the slowest animals

[@gamingpanther7773]

Now they are dependend on those snails and if you temove the invasive snails, the birds are doomed.

[@jrenema]

They like big beaks and cannot lie

[@Servant_of_Christ]

It's not evolution, it's adaptation. They are still birds.

[@jaklg7905]

Evolution is the change in an inheritable trait. So the bigger birds got to eat the better food, hence they EVOLVED into bigger birds. That IS evolution. You can deny it all that you want, it still doesn't make it untrue. How much more actual evidence do you want before you realize that your made up sky daddy, which there is ZERO evidence of, is not real? I know that it is hard to wrap your brain around that you have been lied to your whole life and made a fool of, but realizing it and moving on is the best thing that you can do.

[@arturotorras9069]

Phenotypic Plasticity: This is what humans must work on if we hope to survive ourselves. Lets do it for the planet and everything she has done for us.

[@seanrowshandel1680]

When they're eating more, they're more active, so you can find them. However, there are many animals which are hiding and hungry and we will never find them. Can you think of a way to feed them without copying my more radical ideas from the 2010's?

[@magalonadizon4146]

Life finds a way

[@Doortodoorgeek]

what do I think, I think you all are awesome!!

[@chengwang411]

Asian Open-bill Storks also benefited from the invasion of apple snails. they are expanding

[@alexfarquharson3942]

Are these snails edible to humans?

[@WantedChaos]

Edible in a sense that we can eat them, but they aren't widely farmed so parasites are a concern and they reportedly don't taste good.

[@kyliecarroll765]

Is there any way to get the jelly fish pin?! 😅

[@nunyabiznes33]

I wish there are some animals that can clear the golden snails in my country.

[@DarkVoidIII]

Maybe the bigger snails were just what the snail kites were waiting for? Was there any evidence to suggest that the invasive snail had additional nutrition that the snail kites needed? It can't just be "Oh look, a bigger meal!" I'm thinking there has to be somewhat more to it than that! 😊👍

[@obambagaming1467]

Those young birds that were able to eat the snails not only had a plentyful foodsource, but also that the new prey is also much bigger than their normal food. More food during the juvenile stage = grows to bigger sizes = making it easier to eat more of those snails

[@russellbride]

It would be interesting to know how phenotypic plasticity is different to lamarckism.

[@audreymuzingo933]

I would say the biggest difference is that Lamarck's hypothesis was meant to explain ALL changes in species, whereas plasticity is just one (relatively uncommon) part of one kind of change.

[@kerrypitt9789]

Your supposition that they were brought to North America by the aquarium industry, may have some merit as far as Florida may go, but they were brought as a food source for Chinese immigrants in 1892, found in a population in Minnesota a few years later.

[@raphlvlogs271]

the island apple snails are able to spread so quickly because they occupy a very generalised rule

[@audreymuzingo933]

What is a "very generalized rule"?

[@stax6092]

Cool.

[@beastephenson7970]

Could we do an episode on Slow Worms?

[@mercadv]

Please feature the frugivore monitor Lizards of the Philippines

[@RanEdgar-ok3wk]

Proof for evolution? But- we have a bunch of proof 😅? Anyway nice video so happy the birds are recovering atm.. don’t wanna jinx it so knock on wood lol(I in fact knocked on wood :D)

[@somerandomdude3729]

RULES OF NATURE! And they run when the sun comes up, With their lives on the line, (alive) For all that I've (no choice), Gotta follow the laws of the wild (alive) With their lives on the line (no choice), Out here only the strong survive!

[@alexiaharpham4985]

Mystery snails and apple snails aren’t really the same thing. Mystery snails are just a member of the Apple snail family. Apple snails r pretty uncommon in the aquarium world. Cool video tho overall