Apple Snail vs Pacific Spiny-rat

Pomacea glauca compared with Proechimys decumanus

Key Differences

• Apple Snail is Least Concern while Pacific Spiny-rat is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Apple Snail	Pacific Spiny-rat
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Mollusca (Mollusks)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Gastropoda (Gastropoda)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Architaenioglossa (Architaenioglossa)	Rodentia (Rodents)
Family	Ampullariidae	Echimyidae
Genus	Pomacea	Proechimys
Species	Pomacea glauca	Proechimys decumanus

Evolutionary Relationship

Apple Snail and Pacific Spiny-rat share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Apple Snail

LC — Least Concern

Pacific Spiny-rat

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Apple Snail	Pacific Spiny-rat
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Apple Snail

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, among 4 distinct biome types within the Neotropic biogeographic realm.

Range

Distributed across Dominican Republic, Norway, and Venezuela.

Pacific Spiny-rat

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Found in Ecuador. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Apple Snail

The Apple Snail (Pomacea glauca) is a species in the genus Pomacea. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, among 4 distinct biome types within the Neotrop.