Hawai'i APB - Be on the lookout for picnic baskets containing giant snails (2014)

[OpenD]

You never know... it could be your Nigerian financial adviser sending you a thank-you gift...

Los Angeles repels giant snail invasion with fire

US Customs and Border Protection agents at LAX successfully intercepted a shipment of picnic baskets filled with 67 live giant African snails, the agency announced Monday. The snail shipment, which weighed in at over 35 pounds, was actually seized on July 1st. They were sent here from Nigeria with paperwork specifying the snails were meant for human consumption. The Los Angeles Times says the snails are sometimes fried up and served as snacks. But they never reached their intended destination, and now they're all dead. The 67 snails were incinerated once inspectors positively identified them. That may strike you as a harsh response, but giant African snails are classified as a prohibited species because they can prove incredibly harmful to local plants, structures, and sometimes humans.

Los Angeles repels giant snail invasion with fire | The Verge

[Jungjohann]

They're already here, sans basket.

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by Jungjohann

They're already here, sans basket.

True enough, but given the price of meat lately, some might be tempted...

[KauaiHiker]

I love (to eat) snails, but not in Hawaii: Rat Lungworm Hawai?i - What You Need to Know

[hotzcatz]

I once called the state ag folks to inquire about the best way to get rid of the snails and they suggested lining them up on the driveway and running over them with a car. Not exactly the "how to get rid of big snails" answer I was looking for. I'd been hoping for a general area spray or something instead of a one by one approach. Although, once you get rid of the majority of them, they don't seem to repopulate all that quickly.