AKRON, Ohio — The Akron Zoo recently reintroduced a species of snail, called the Partula snail, that is listed as extinct in the wild.
Two staff members, including animal care manager Kathleen Balogh, traveled to Tahiti to make this happen.
These snails were declared extinct in the wild in the 1990s.
“We got to release them into the wild,” Balogh said. “While we were there, it was really encouraging.We did find one baby that was wild, born from a release this spring by St. Louis Zoo.”
She said finding the wild baby snail is a sign that what they are doing might be working.
“We are really excited because if we can have breeding, and if those babies grow up to be adults, that means we can reclassify this species as no longer extinct in the wild,” she said.
The snails play a vital role in the ecological system of the French Polynesian Islands through maintaining forest health by feeding on decaying plants.
“Every snail that we released last month was born and raised here at the Akron Zoo,” she said. “A little part of you hopes you raised them right and they make good choices. It was surreal to take so many animals and to give such a leg up to a species that’s trying to make a comeback into the wild.”
She said there will be more releases of the snails in the future.
