Snails Attacking Miami Homes. The East African land snail, or giant African land snail, scientific name Achatina fulica, is a species of large, air-breathing land snail. Since making their first appeared in 2011, the state has vanquished nearly 130,000 of the pesky snails, which eat not only 500 kinds of shrubbery and produce, but also stucco — an essential building material for Florida homes and offices.
Florida officials are actively seeking out these giant marauders to prevent further spreading of this unusual problem. The city of Miami is now in the process of using trained dogs to find the snails in hopes of eradicating them.
More than 128,000 Giant African Land Snails have been found and eradicated in the two years since the highly destructive creatures invaded the Miami-Dade area, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam says.
More and more strange animals and other species which have no known predators or natural controls are making their way to North America. It’s thought that the snail invasion began with the smuggling of a few snails into Florida by a man who practices a traditional African religion. He reportedly convinced some followers to drink the snails’ juices.