Symptoms of parasitic meningitis include nausea, stiff neck, vomiting, headache, confusion and eye sensitivity to light. The parasite can cause severe central nervous system and gastrointestinal damage in humans and a rare form of parasitic meningitis called eosinophilic meningitis (EM). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, infection is typically caused by consumption of a contaminated animal or produce, and human to human spread is rare. Parasitic meningitis, though less common than bacterial and viral meningitis, can be fatal and cause inflammation around the brain and spinal cord. The snails are native to East Africa and thrive in warm, tropical climates. They eat around 500 different plants, including cucumbers, peas, beans, ornamental plants and melons, and can also consume tree bark, stucco, paint on buildings and plaster. They are very invasive and one of the most damaging snail species in the world. These snails reproduce rapidly because each snail can lay up to 1,200 eggs a year. This led to the capture of around 1,000 snails. State officials set a quarantine for Pasco County, north of Tampa, last summer after at least one confirmed sighting. They were then reintroduced in 2011, and were completely eradicated in Broward and Miami County in 2021, a culmination of another decade-long battle which resulted in the destruction of 160,000 snails. It took 10 years and $1 million to eradicate them, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. They first appeared in Miami in 1966 and over 18,000 snails and their eggs were destroyed by 1973. The snails were declared eradicated twice in Florida. The giant African land snail is so large that it’s disqualified from competing in the World Snail Racing Championships, National Geographic reports. Fully grown adult giant African land snails are identified by their brownish, striped shells and can grow up to eight inches long and weigh over two pounds, New York Invasive Species Information reports.
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