August 2022

A Customs Broker in Tonga finds a Giant African Snail (GAS) at Tongatapu’s main seaport

 Siutoni Tupou, Head of MAFF-Quarantine Division for the Kingdom of Tonga, describes how her team dealt with the recent incursion of Giant African Snail.

“On Friday morning 26 August 2022, a Customs Broker found one snail on the doorstep of the Customs Office.  On the same day, our Quarantine Inspectors scattered some Blitzem snail bait around the Customs compound and the next day, Blitzem was applied to the main port of Queen Salote wharf and imported container yards. The Quarantine Inspectors monitored and scouted for more snails three times over the following six weeks. To date, no further snails have been found, but daily radio announcements call for the public to report any more sightings.”  

Siutoni’s team’s experience highlights how effective awareness is to help prevent the establishment of new species, and how other government workers can support the work of the biosecurity/quarantine teams.

The speedy action by Tonga’s Quarantine team eliminated the risk of the snails travelling from the port to other island groups.

Giant African Snail is a priority species for prevention in the region. The snail can devastate all types of crops and carries a rat lungworm parasite that can cause a brain inflammation in people. It damages native plants, altering the natural habitats needed by native species. It also probably outcompetes native snails, which are a group that is threatened by invasive species in many Pacific countries.