Could be...sure is high dollar value.
Wonder who they work for?
http://www.abcactionnews.com/images/stories/2005/08/0801snail.jpg
http://www.abcactionnews.com/images/stories/2005/08/0801snails.jpg
http://www.abcactionnews.com/stories/2005/08/050801snails.shtml
" Super-sized alien snail threatening Florida's ecosystems"
an ABC Action News report 08/01/05
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "LAKELAND - It moves real slow, but that hasn't stopped it from multiplying and spreading across much of Florida.
It is not hard to miss the South American Apple Snail because it is the size of a fist. The alien creatures have both a gill and a lung, and they eat almost all aquatic plant life, which could lead to damaging algae blooms.
"If algae blooms become bad enough, it can remove the oxygen from the water game. And then you can have fish die in the water, including game fish," explained Dana Denson of the Department of Environmental Protection.
The snail, as its name implies, is from South America. They most likely entered Florida's waters when homeowners tossed them out of their aquariums or started trying to farm them for commercial sale."