The Giant Panda snail Hedleyella falconeri is Australia’s largest native land snail species, reaching shell lengths of up to 9cm. They are endemic to the subtropical vine thickets of Northeastern NSW to Southeast QLD. LIke most snail species they are mainly active after heavy rains where they emerge from the ground to feed and mate.
Housing
Giant panda snails must be kept at temperatures below 28C.
An enclosure of minimum 30L would be acceptable for one snail adding another 20L for each extra snail kept.
Whilst Panda snails do burrow a larger footprint enclosure is preferred.
Recommended substrates: Forest floor mix, isopod and millipede mix or cocofibre/peatmoss.
Health and Cleanliness
Always ensure you wash your hands before and after touching the snails.
Spot clean their enclosures and change substrate as needed.
Never allow food to become mouldy, even if using a bioactive setup with cleanup crews, as may cause unwanted problems.
Food & Water
Feed your panda snails fresh fruit and vegetables every second day, remove any uneatten food and adjust quantities accordingly. Supplement with crushed cuttlebone or mollusc mix.
Spray down enclosure with water weekly or whenever the surface of the substrate begins to dry out.
Water bowls optional
Breeding
Panda snails are seldom successfully bred, due to this they used to be deemed inappropriate for captivity.
There has been quite a few success stories lately, the key seems to be the use of an alkaline soil and simulating the dry and wet seasons. Allow the enclosure to dry out for some months at a time and then mist heavily each day until breeding behaviours are observed.
It is recommended to remove the very large eggs from the adults enclosure.