Molluscicidal evaluation of three common plants from India.

Mortality caused by the aqueous extract of latex of Thevetia peruviana, Alstonia scholaris and Euphorbia pulcherrima against two harmful freshwater snails, Lymnaea acuminata and Indoplanorbis exustus, is reported. Latices of all the plants at high doses were also lethal to freshwater fish Channa punctatus, which shares the habitat with these snails, but within 24 h, LC90 of snail L. acuminata did not cause any mortality to fishes in a mixed population of snail and fish. Therefore, these plant extracts may eventually be of great value for the control of harmful aquatic snails and other molluscan pests.