時差N小時:入侵非洲大陸的蝸牛

Like many midwesterners, it turns out that giantAfrican landsnails really love Florida.

體型巨大的非洲陸生蝸牛同許多生活在中西部地區(qū)的動物一樣大愛美國弗羅里達州。

Unfortunately, giant African Land Snails are some ofthe world's most destructive snails.

但不幸的是，他們的破壞性在世界上數(shù)一數(shù)二。

They cangrow to be eight inches long-as big as rats-and to weigh more than one pound.

他們有8英寸長，和老鼠一般大小，重達一磅還多。

They're sohuge, in fact, that their shells have beenknown to blow out tires.

他們是那樣的大，事實上，他們的殼能扎破輪胎，這一點遠近聞名。

The real trouble is that these snails reproduce very quickly.

真正的麻煩在于這種蝸牛繁衍速度極快。

Under optimal conditions-such aswarm, tropical Florida-one snail can lay up to a thousand or soeggs a year.

真正的麻煩在于這種蝸牛繁衍速度極快。

And these snails'typical life span is three to five years, with some living as long as nine years.

而一般這種蝸牛的壽命是3到5年，一些甚至可以存活9年之久。

Unlike most snails, giant African land snails don't just eat decaying organic matter or leafmolds;they eat the plants themselves, so they pose a huge threat to agriculture, one ofFlorida's mainindustries.

同大多數(shù)蝸牛不同，這種蝸牛不吃腐敗的有機質(zhì)食物，也不吃葉霉。他們吃植物本身，如此一來，對主要產(chǎn)業(yè)為農(nóng)業(yè)的弗羅里達州來說，他們會構(gòu)成巨大的威脅。

What's more, they're not picky.

此外，他們可一點也不挑食。

They eat over five hundred species of plants, and somehave even been known to chewthrough stucco and plastic containers.

他們的食物涵蓋500多種植物，據(jù)說有些蝸牛甚至還啃食石灰泥和塑料袋。

And for your health.

蝸牛對人類的健康也有害。

Some of these snails can carry diseases such as a parasitic rat lungworm thatcan causemeningitis in humans.

一些蝸牛會攜帶具有寄生性的大鼠肺絲蟲和其他疾病，導致人類患上腦膜炎。

So if you see a giant African land snail in your yard, don't touch itor kill it yourself.

因此，你要是在自家的庭院看到一個巨大的非洲蝸牛，珍愛生命，千萬別碰。

Instead, call your local authorities or department of agriculture so that they can dispose of thesnail and its nesting materials safely.

你要做的是打電話請地方當局或農(nóng)業(yè)部門來安全地處理它們及它們筑巢的材料。