Chinese mysterysnail, Oriental mysterysnail, Asian applesnail, Chinese applesnail, C. chinensis malleatus, Viviparus malleatus, V. chinensis malleatus, Bellamya chinensis, B. chinensis malleatus

The shell of C. chinensis grows allometrically (the height increasing faster than the width) and does so at a decreased rate in comparison with C. japonica, such that the adult shell is less elongate than that of its congener (Jokinen 1982). The radula (feeding structure) also may differ between C. japonica and C. chinensis, but there is so much variation even within one species that it is not a good diagnostic characteristic (Smith 2000). However, as a general guide, in one North American population, the radula of C. chinensis had seven small cusps on the marginal tooth and a large central cusp with four small cusps on either side (Jokinen 1982).

It prefers lentic water bodies with silt, sand, and mud substrate in eastern North America, although it can survive in slower regions of streams as well (Jokinen 1982, Stanczykowska et al. 1971). This species has been found in waters in eastern North America with pH 6.5–8.4, calcium concentration of 5–97 ppm, magnesium concentration of 13–31 ppm, oxygen concentration of 7–11 ppm, depths of 0.2–3 m, conductivity of 63–400 μmhos/cm, and sodium concentration of 2–49 ppm (Jokinen 1982, Jokinen 1992, Stanczykowska et al. 1971).  It can tolerate conditions in stagnant waters near septic tanks (Perron and Probert 1973). Prefers slow-moving freshwater rivers, streams, and lakes with soft, muddy or silty bottoms.

This species is ovoviviparous (Jokinen 1992). Females live up to 5 years, while males live up to 3, occasionally 4 years (Jokinen 1982; Jokinen 1992). Female fecundity is very high, with brood pouches found to contain up to 133 embroys at once; larger females have larger broods, rather than larger embryos, increasing cluch sizes overall (Stephen et al. 2013). All females generally contain embryos from May to August and young are born from June through October in eastern North America in shallow water, then females begin migrating to deeper water for the winter in the fall (Jokinen 1982; Jokinen 1992; Stanczykowska et al. 1971). Females bear more young in their 4th and 5th years than in other years (Jokinen 1992).           

Johnson et al. (2009) showed that C. chinensis often co-occurs with the rusty crayfish (Faxonius rusticus), another species that has invaded the midwest; this co-occurrence is likey due to the resistance of C. chinensis to crayfish predation, which is attributed to their thick shell.

This species is a host to many parasites (see 'Impacts' section below; Chang et al 1968; Michelson 1970; Otsuru 1979; Chao et al. 1993; Chung and Jung, 1999; Sohn et al. 2013).

Summary of species impacts derived from literature review. Click on an icon to find out more...

Environmental	Socioeconomic	Beneficial

Cipangopaludina chinensis has a moderate socio-economic impact in the Great Lakes.

There is little to no evidence to suggest that Cipangopaludina chinensis has significant beneficial impacts in the Great Lakes.

Note: Check federal, state/provincial, and local regulations for the most up-to-date information.

Control

Biological

Manipulation of predator fishes and turtles may be somewhat useful; however, because C. chinensis grows rapidly to a large size and possesses a thick shell, it quickly outgrows the gape limit of most predators, allowing it to escape predation by smaller fishes, waterfowl, and crayfish (Crone et al. 2023).

Physical

Desiccation is not an effective control method. Field and laboratory experiments indicate adult snails can survive extreme air exposure and desiccation for over 9 weeks by sealing their operculum and burrowing into mud (Lewis et al. 2025; Kingsbury 2020).

Chemical

Standard molluscicides (e.g., copper sulfate, rotenone) have proven largely ineffective against C. chinensis (Hartzell & Nauman 2024; Kingsbury et al. 2020). When exposed to chemical treatments, the snails simply retract and tightly seal their operculum, surviving the acute chemical exposure while the non-selective chemicals inadvertently kill vulnerable native snails.
Note: Check state/provincial and local regulations for the most up-to-date information regarding permits for control methods. Follow all label instructions.

Taxonomy of the introduced populations of mysterysnails from Asia is confusing and there are many scientific names in use. There has also been debate regarding whether or not C. chinensis and C. japonica in North America are synonymous and simply different phenotypes of the same species. This database considers the two as separate species.  Smith (2000) argues that Cipangopaludina is a subgenus of Bellamya; however, because most North American literature does not use the genus Bellamya to refer to these introduced snails, the mysterysnails discussed here are referred to by the name Cipangopaludina. David and Cote (2019) did a genetic and morphological analysis on North American populations of both C. japonica and C. chinensis, finding them genetically distinct, morphologically indistinguishable, and co-occuring in multiple lakes of New York; the authors go on to discuss literature which also supports the idea that these two species have no shell characters that can be used to distinguish them morphologically.

Literature cited in this database regarding the Chinese mysterysnail may employ the following names: C. chinensis, C. chinensis malleatus, C. chinensis malleata, Viviparus malleatus, V. chinensis malleatus, B. chinensis and B. chinensis malleatus.