Extinct snail species bred at Whipsnade Zoo returned to the wild
Hundreds of snails native to French Polynesia and bred at Whipsnade Zoo have returned to their natural habitat.
Last updated 10th Oct 2023
With the help of a researcher from the University of Oxford, Dr Justin Gerlach, zoologists at Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire have achieved the rare task of returning an extinct species to the wild.
The Partula snail, whose population was wiped out 35 years ago, has just returned to its native islands of the French Polynesia.
The snail disappeared after efforts from environmentalists, at the time, to regulate biodiversity, which saw non-native and larger species of snails wipe out the Partula snail.
Zoologist at Whispnade Zoo, Tyrone Capel, said: "Many factors made them go extinct originally, but the biggest one was the introduction of the giant African land snail."
"So this is a really big snail that got introduced to Tahiti and the island of French Polynesia and that became a really big problem."
Those snails would feed on the smaller Partula snail, which are as big as a thumbnail, reducing their population quickly and drastically, until extinction.
"When they were basically going extinct, the Zoologist at the time, Dave Clarke, went with specialists to try and find as many as they can", added Mr Capel.
With efforts from a team in the UK, hundreds were returned to the wild after an intense breeding programme at the Zoo.
Mr Capel told Greatest Hits Radio: "At times we were getting nearly 40 babies a week. You can sometimes get your numbers up very quickly."
The Partula snail is essential to the biodiversity of the Polynesian islands, but not only. They are a huge part of the cultural heritage of the islands.
Locals would pick up the empty shells to create necklaces, a cultural offering as precious as a "diamond necklace", added Mr Capel.
With the help of the locals who work closely with the team to protect the new arrivals, the repopulation of the snail could return a large part of their heritage.
Mr Capel is hopeful that within a couple of weeks, the young snails released in the wild will reach their adult size, which would enable them to officially change the Partula snail's status from extinct to critically endangered, a huge step for biodiversity.