ABSTRACT
The paper reports the control operation of the golden apple snail in Sabah
implemented by the Department of Agriculture following the outbreak of the pest in
the 1990s. The snail was sighted in Keningau in 1992. Two years later it mushroomed
to most of the rice-growing districts with a total infested area of about 5,000 ha. The
control operation employed an integrated approach consisting of cultural, biological
and chemical components. A research program was initiated at the same time to
develop new control techniques. Often, Extension’s agents and Research personnel’s
organized dialogue and briefing sessions to disseminate information and to motivate
farmers to participate in the control operation. A task force was set up to supervise
and to monitor the progress of the control operation. The pest was brought under
control within two years. There were no significant crop losses so far. The most
common control measures adopted by farmers were tea seed powder applications,
handpicking, water depth management and the use of older seedlings in transplanting.
Biological control consisted of duck herding recommended at a density of 5 - 10
ducks/ha. The duck reduced the pest population to a tolerable level after grazing for a
period of one to two months. It was foreseen that the pest is going to spread to all the
rice-growing areas in Sabah in the future by man activities. So at present it is essential
to educate the farmers on the management of the golden apple snail in rice so that
should an outbreak occurs, farmers are able to contain the pest themselves.