간질(肝蛭)의 중간숙주(中間宿主)인 애기물달팽이의 생태(生態)

The life history of lymnaea viridis, the intermediate host of fasciola hepatica, in the field

A field study of Lymnaea viridis, the intermediate host of Fasciola hepatica, was carried out in the eastern Chonnam area. The snail was distributed all over the place. Their major habitats were rice paddies (60.8%), followed by brooks (23.2%), irrigation canals (8.6%), and drains (5.6%). Other minor habitats included natural ponds (1.5%), lakes (0.4%), and rivers (0.1%). L. viridis was living in wet clay soil, occasionally entering water. The snails discharged egg masses when the temperature was $15{\sim}20^{\circ}C$, and the number of the snails was the highest late in October. At $9^{\circ}C$ the snails were not found on the mud: they were present deep in water or at the base of rice stubbles. These hibernation sites were discussed with the epidemiology of fascioliasis.