In 1974, the snail Euglandina rosea, commonly known as the wolf snail, was introduced to French Polynesia with the goal of controlling the African giant snail, a species that was damaging local crops. However, the wolf snail proved to be an ineffective predator of its intended target. Instead, it turned its attention to the small, native Partula snails, which are endemic to the region. This unexpected shift in behavior led to the extinction of 45 out of 51 evaluated Partula species, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The African giant snail, which had been introduced decades earlier, was a significant threat to agriculture, but the solution chosen—introducing a new predator—had devastating unintended consequences. The African giant snail, a large terrestrial mollusk, had been accidentally introduced to French Polynesia and began to spread rapidly, damaging food crops and young fruit trees. In response, local authorities decided to introduce Euglandina rosea as a natural predator. The idea was to use a carnivorous snail to control another, avoiding the use of chemical pesticides. However, the biological control strategy was implemented without a thorough understanding of the ecological impacts. The wolf snail, despite being a predator, was outmaneuvered by the larger and faster African giant snail, which could easily evade its attacks. Meanwhile, the smaller and more vulnerable Partula snails had no defense against this new predator. The consequences were severe and swift. Within a decade of the wolf snail's introduction, seven species of Partula snails had disappeared from the island of Moorea. Similar extinctions occurred across other islands in the Society Islands, including Bora Bora, Tahaa, Raiatea, and Huahine. By 2022, the IUCN confirmed that 45 of the 51 Partula species evaluated were extinct in the wild, with many of these losses directly attributed to the wolf snail. A 2019 study published in the journal Evolutionary Applications estimated that about 51 percent of the partulid species on the Society Islands are now extinct. Some species, like Partula magistri and Partula dentifera, were officially declared extinct in 2024. In response to the crisis, scientists launched a captive breeding program in 1986 to preserve the remaining Partula species in zoos around the world. This effort has had some success, with thousands of individuals of two species, Partula rosea and Partula varia, being reintroduced into French Polynesia in 2019. Today, the Marquesas Islands, the Austral Islands, and parts of the Cook Islands are considered refuges for surviving Partula species. The wolf snail is now classified as a nuisance species in French Polynesia, and its transport between islands is prohibited. The story of the Partula snails serves as a cautionary tale for the global scientific community, emphasizing the need for rigorous ecological assessments before introducing new species. While biological control remains a viable alternative to pesticides, the Partula disaster highlights the risks of hasty decisions that can lead to irreversible ecological damage.