Antillorbis aeruginosus

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Antillorbis aeruginosus
Naturalis Biodiversity Center - RMNH.MOL.238369 - Antillorbis aeruginosus (Morelet, 1851) - Planorbidae - Mollusc shell.jpeg
Status TNC G5.svg
Secure  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Superorder: Hygrophila
Family: Planorbidae
Genus: Antillorbis
Species:
A. aeruginosus
Binomial name
Antillorbis aeruginosus
(Morelet, 1851) [2]
Synonyms [3]
List
  • Drepanotrema aeruginosum(Morelet, 1851); superseded combination
  • Gyraulus arizonensis(Pilsbry & Ferriss, 1915); junior subjective synonym
  • Helicodiscus lineatus sonorensisJ. G. Cooper, 1893; junior subjective synonym
  • Planorbis aeruginosusMorelet, 1851;superseded combination
  • Planorbis arizonensisPilsbry & Ferriss, 1915; superseded combination
  • Planorbis circumlineatusShuttleworth, 1854; original combination (unaccepted)
  • Planorbis filocinctusPilsbry & Ferriss, 1906; unaccepted

Antillorbis aeruginosus, also called the rusty ramshorn or coppery ramshorn, is a small species of freshwater planorbid snail from Central and North America. [4] Globally, the species is doing well and is considered secure, but on the island of Martinique it is critically endangered. [1] [5]

Contents

Taxonomy

This species was originally described by Arthur Morelet in 1851 as Planorbis aeruginosus. [2] It was redescribed several times under many names, including Planorbis circumlineatus in 1854, [6] Helicodiscus lineatus sonorensis (a subspecies of Helicodiscus parallelus ) in 1893, [7] Planorbis filocinctus in 1906, [8] and Planorbis arizonensis 1915. [9]

Some sources argue that Tropicorbis decipiens was misidentified as a new species, and that it is actually a synonym of Antillorbis aeruginosus. [10] [11] This has not been confirmed, however. [3]

Description

Shell

The shell of Antillorbis aeruginosus is between 3 and 5 mm (0.12 and 0.20 in) in width and 1 mm in height. [8] [12] It may have colored bands across the shell. [7] The umbilicus is sunken on both sides, giving a concave appearance. The left side is more concave than the right. [8] There are between 2 and 3 whorls. [7] [8] The lip of the aperture is rounded, but is asymmetrical with the right side being straighter. The aperture is about the same dimensions in both its width and height, and has an overall heart shape. [8] There is a slight sculpture made of grooves that grow parallel to the shell's coil. [8] [13]

Antillorbis aeruginosis right side.png
Antillorbis aeruginosus ventral side.png
Drawings depicting the spiraling, grooved sculpture (left), the asymmetrical, heart-shaped aperture (right), and left/right concavities (right)

The spiraling sculpture is similar to that of Helicodiscus parallelus . The two species can be distinguished by the shape of the aperture (including the lack of denticles), the smaller umbilicus, and the wider whorls. [7] Additionally, the shell of A. aeruginosus may be distinguished from Antillorbis nordestensis by the presence of sculpture, the rounder aperture, and the larger size. [13]

Reproductive features

Two flagella attach to the base of the penis sheath, which are much longer than those of Antillorbis nordestensis (around 475 microns). [13] Unlike the genus Drepanotrema , these flagella do not share their lumen with the penis sheath. [14] Other reproductive features, including the preputium and penis sheath, are nearly twice as long as those of A. nordestensis (723 and 618 microns, respectively). [13]

Distribution

Antillorbis aeruginosus is found throughout Central America, the Southwestern United States, and several Caribbean islands. [4] [12] Specific occurrences have been recorded in the Mexican states of Sonora and Querétaro, [7] [15] the Mexican island of Cozumel, [16] the U.S. states of Arizona [8] and Texas, [17] the U.S. territories of Puerto Rico and Saint Thomas Island, and the Haitian/Dominican Republican island of Hispanola. [6]

Habitat and ecology

Antillorbis aeruginosus may be found in temporary pools of water, and can aestivate during the dry period. It may be found in very high densities. [12] [13] It may also inhabit streams, springs, marshes, and ponds. [18]

Conservation status

According to NatureServe, Antillorbis aeruginosus is considered secure (G5) worldwide, though it only considers Texas and Arizona. [1] In Mexico, it is considered to be apparently secure (N4). [15] On the island of Martinique, the IUCN lists it as critically endangered. [5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 NatureServe (8 June 2007). "Antillorbis aeruginosus". NatureServe Explorer. Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  2. 1 2 Morelet, A. (1851). Testacea novissima insulae Cubanae et Americae Centralis (in Latin). Baillière, J. B. p. 15. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.11067. OCLC   15705229.
  3. 1 2 Vinarski, Maxim (2018). "Antillorbis aeruginosus (Morelet, 1851)". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  4. 1 2 "Antillorbis aeruginosus (Morelet, 1851)". Global Biodiversity Information Facility . Retrieved 2025-08-27.
  5. 1 2 Gigot, Guillaume; Jeusset, Arzhvaël; Touroult, Julien; de Massary, Jean-Christophe (2020). "La Liste rouge des espèces menacées en France – Chapitres Faune de Martinique". PatriNat. p. 32. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  6. 1 2 Shuttleworth, R. J. (1854). "Beiträge zur näheren Kenntniss der Land- und Süsswasser-Mollusken der Insel Portorico (Schluss)". Mittheilungen der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft in Bern (in Latin) (321/322): 96–97. ISSN   0077-6130. LCCN   sf80001426. OCLC   1590060.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Cooper, J. G. (1893). "On land and fresh water Mollusca of lower California". Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences. 2 (3): 343. ISSN   0068-547X. LCCN   17008544. OCLC   2255608.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Pilsbry, H. A.; Ferriss, J. H. (1906). "MOLLUSCA OF THE SOUTHWESTERN STATES. II". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 58: 165. ISSN   0097-3157. LCCN   12030019. OCLC   1382862.
  9. Pilsbry, H. A.; Ferriss, J. H. (1915). "Mollusca of the southwestern states, VII: The Dragoon, Mule, Santa Rita, Baboquivari and Tucson Ranges, Arizona". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 67 (2). ISSN   0097-3157. LCCN   12030019. OCLC   1382862.
  10. Jutting, Tera van Benthem (1925). "ON A COLLECTION OF NON-MARINE MOLLUSCA FROM CURAÇAO". Bijdragen tot de Dierkunde. 24 (1): 28–30.
  11. Ferguson, Frederick F.; Richards, Charles S. (1963). "Fresh-Water Mollusks of Puerto Rico and the U. S. Virgin Islands" . Transactions of the American Microscopical Society . 82 (4): 394. doi:10.2307/3224199. JSTOR   3224199 via JSTOR.
  12. 1 2 3 García, Rafael Armiñana; Duarte, Rigoberto Fimia; Oliver, José Iannacone (2021). Oliver, José Iannacone (ed.). CATÁLOGO ILUSTRADO de los moluscos dulceacuícolas de CUBA Importancia médico-veterinaria (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Lima, Perú: Oliver, José Iannacone. ISBN   978-612-00-6149-7.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 Pointier, J. P.; Escoubeyrou, K.; Bargues, B. D.; Mas-Coma, S. (2001). "Drepanotrema Nordestense (Lucena, 1953) (Pulmonata: Planorbidae): A New Record for the Bolivian Altiplano and ITS Differentiation by Morphology and Enzymes" . Journal of Molluscan Studies . 67: 7–16. doi:10.1093/mollus/67.1.7.
  14. Hubendick, Bengt (1955). "Phylogeny in the Planorbidae" . Transactions of the Zoological Society of London. 28 (6): 475. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.1955.tb00004.x.
  15. 1 2 Czaja, Alexander; Meza-Sánchez, Iris Gabriela; Estrada-Rodríguez, José Luis; Romero-Méndez, Ulises; Sáenz-Mata, Jorge; Ávila-Rodríguez, Verónica; Becerra-López, Jorge Luis; Estrada-Arellano, Josué Raymundo; Cardoza-Martínez, Gabriel Fernando; Aguillón-Gutiérrez, David Ramiro; Cordero-Torres, Diana Gabriela; Covich, Alan P. (2021). "The freshwater snails (Mollusca: Gastropoda)of Mexico: updated checklist, endemicity hotspots, threats and conservation status" (PDF). Revista mexicana de biodiversidad. 91: 7. doi:10.22201/ib.20078706e.2020.91.2909. eISSN   2007-8706. ISSN   1870-3453.
  16. Richards, Horace G. (1936). "Land and Freshwater Mollusks from the Island of Cozumel, Mexico, and Their Bearing on the Geological History of the Region". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society . 77 (3): 255. JSTOR   984730 via JSTOR.
  17. Branson, Branley A. (1960). "Gastropoda of the Rob and Bessie Welder Wildlife Foundation Refuge, San Patricio County, Texas" . The Southwestern Naturalist. 5 (3): 157. Bibcode:1960SWNat...5..143B. doi:10.2307/3669510. JSTOR   3669510 via JSTOR.
  18. Pointier, Jean-Pierre; Augustin, David (1999). "Biological control and invading freshwater snails. A case study" . Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series III - Sciences de la Vie. 322 (12): 1095. doi:10.1016/S0764-4469(99)00108-0. PMID   10656149.