Snail varnish
Posted 10 Sep 2024
The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) has been preparing thousands of extremely rare Partula snails reared at Edinburgh Zoo to be released into the wild in French Polynesia. The wildlife conservation charity has been part of a collaborative initiative, coordinated by London Zoo's Senior Curator of Invertebrates Dr. Paul Pearce-Kelly, helping to bring the species back from the brink since 1984.
Before making the 15,000km journey, the tiny nocturnal snails were individually marked by RZSS teams with a dot of yellow UV reflective paint, meaning they will glow under UV torchlight and help conservationists monitor the populations at night when they’re most active.
Notes to Editors
[ENDS]
Hi-res images - https://we.tl/t-YLE5eVE1dH
Images and video must be credited to RZSS
Notes to editor:
• RZSS has been helping to restore wild populations of Partula snail – also known as Polynesian tree snails – since 1984
• RZSS released hundreds of Partula snails into the wild in 2023. Read the announcement at rzss.org.uk/news/hundreds-extinct-snails-released-wild
• Edinburgh Zoo was home to the very last individual of the Partula taeniata sumulans variety in 2010, which was bred back to a safe level of several hundred by keepers at the wildlife conservation charity
• Partula snails were under imminent extinction threat in the 1980s and early 1990s, after the invasive predatory rosy wolf snail (Euglandina rosea) was introduced to rid the islands of a previously introduced non-native species, the African giant land snail (Lissachatina fulica). Unfortunately, the predatory rosy wolf snail targeted the endemic Partula snails instead, meaning many were lost or left close to extinction shortly after the predator’s arrival
• The last few surviving individuals of several Partula species were rescued in the early 1990s by RZSS and ZSL in order to begin the international conservation breeding programme – a collaboration between 15 zoos which care for 15 species and sub-species, the majority of which have an Extinct-in-the-Wild Red List threat status
About the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (rzss.org.uk)
• The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) is a wildlife conservation charity with a bold vision: a world which protects, values and loves nature
• Edinburgh Zoo and Highland Wildlife Park are gateways to the natural world through which people can experience nature, learn about the challenges facing wildlife and discover how we harness our expertise in conservation science and animal care alongside the unique power of the RZSS family – our teams, supporters and partners – to save animals from extinction
For further information, please contact comms@rzss.org.uk
.jpg)