Andrew Vik
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Dear Gary:

I agree with you 100%. Though this species already has established itself in Florida and seems harmless enough,
I should not have contributed to its spread. The winter freezes seem to keep them confined to the coast, but
there was no freeze this year. I will be on the look out for any survivors.

Yours, Andrew

Gary Rosenberg wrote:

> Releasing non-native species in your backyard is not a good idea. They can become major agricultural pests.
>
> Gary
>
> How long  is the life span of Otala lactea? I let half a dozen go in my
> Dad's yard (which is about the best snail habitat in peninsular Tampa)
> about a year ago. He said he saw one of them a couple mornings ago. A
> week after I released them, I found a couple of the shells which had
> been emptied out by rodents. I assumed that they all had suffered the
> same fate, but maybe one survived.