DEVELOPMENT OF NEOSTRONGYLUS-LINEARIS IN CERNUELLA (CERNUELLA) VIRGATA EXPERIMENTALLY INFECTED AND MAINTAINED IN THE SUBHUMID CLIMATE OF GALICIA IN NORTHWEST SPAIN

Twelve batches of the mollusc Cernuella (Cernuella) virgata (Mollusca: Helicidae) were deposited monthly directly on faeces containing first -stage larvae of Neostrongylus linearis, so that they were naturally i nfected. Every two weeks the molluscs were examined to study the larva l development of N. linearis. No correlation was found between the num ber of first-stage larvae of N. linearis on the faeces and the number of total larvae and third-stage larvae which developed in the snails. However, a negative correlation was found between temperature and the days needed to reach the different larval stages. Thus, the molluscs h arboured third-stage larvae from mid-spring to mid-autumn, the period of time which carries the greatest risk of infection for the definitiv e hosts.