Apple

Apple, 2022
Yulia Shtern, Magical Zoo Series
21 x 12 1/2 x 10 3/4”
upcycled materials, glue, varnish
4200

Apple snails, the world’s biggest tropical/subtropical amphibious freshwater snails, are native to South and Central America and the Caribbean region. They possess exceptional adaptability to both droughts and excessive rainfall. They have a dual respiratory system allowing them to come out of the water. Their shell can be closed from within, preventing them from drying out while hibernating. They are a popular aquarium pet because of their beautiful shape and colour. The combination of their adaptability and ubiquitousness has resulted in apple snails being on the list of the world’s 100 worst invasive species. In the 1980s they were introduced in Taiwan to create an escargot industry. The project failed, but the snails quickly spread out throughout the entire South East Asia. The same happened when they were brought to Hawaii. Apple snails wreak havoc on non-native ecosystems, destroying farming crops and wetlands, predating on native snails, and carrying parasites that are dangerous to animals and humans. Apple snails often enter rivers because people keeping them as pets, being ignorant of their potential harm, release them into the environment. Apple snails are an example of how rapidly and easily an adaptive species can spread through a habitat that is not ready to handle them, and of human carelessness and their lack of understanding of ecosystems.