55 



damage had been associated with the feeding, this could negate easily 

 any possible good the snail could have accomplished. Further studies 

 as to the surface effects of the snail on the leaves are needed. 



Section 4. Examination of Snail Fecal Content 

 Introduction 



No information is available on the fecal content of the citrus 

 tree snail. To support the scanning electron microscopy findings, this 

 study was undertaken to determine if D. dormani ingests insects, citrus 

 rust mites, and their spermatophores. 

 Materials and Methods 



Citrus tree snails were examined for their fecal content. Fecal 

 pellets 2 mm X 3 mm were field collected from a grove in Orange Lake, 

 Florida. Also snails were placed on citrus fruit and leaves for feed- 

 ing. Fecal pellets were collected from laboratory specimens as they 

 were deposited. The feces were placed first into watch glasses con- 

 taining distilled water, then 70% isopropyl alcohol. This was repeated 

 three times for each fecal pellet. The baths were used to remove any 

 foreign or living material from the surface of the feces. The fecal 

 pellets then were allowed to air dry prior to disruption by forceps 

 then by a sonic vibrator in 5 ml of distilled water. Suspended materials 

 were placed onto glass microscope slides. All samples first were 

 examined with a binocular microscope, then with a phase microscope and 

 photographed. 

 Results and Discussion 



The preponderance of the fecal content consisted of strands of 

 various length fungal mycelia. Due to its disrupted condition, no 



