| Discus rotundatus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| A live Discus rotundatus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Subclass: | Heterobranchia |
| Order: | Stylommatophora |
| Family: | Discidae |
| Genus: | Discus |
| Species: | D. rotundatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Discus rotundatus (O. F. Müller, 1774) [1] | |
| Synonyms | |
Discus rotundatus, common name rotund disc, is a species of small, air-breathing, land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Discidae, the disk snails.
The shells of Discus rotundatus in the adult stage measure 5.7–7 millimetres (0.22–0.28 in) in diameter and 2.4–6 millimetres (0.094–0.236 in) in height. [3] Shells are reddish brown with darker cross bands, flat and densely ribbed. The umbilicus is quite wide, reaching about 1/3 of the shell diameter. [3]
Among the species of Discus in Europe and North America, Discus rotundatus is recognized by the alternating pattern of reddish brown spots, tight coiling of the whorls and broad and shallow umbilicus.
The body of this gastropod is bluish black on the upperside, while the lower side is greyish white. They mainly feed on plant debris, humus, algae and fungi. [3]
These snails, like most terrestrial gastropods, are hermaphrodite. The reproductive season last from May to October. Usually they lay 20-50 eggs in rotting wood or below decaying leaves. Eggs are white and flattened, measure about 1 mm and hatch after 10–30 days. These gastropods reach their maturity only in the second or third season and can live 2–3 years. [3] Unlike many terrestrial snails they do not have a sex dart. [4]
This species lives in Western and Central Europe. It is found in the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine [5] and Slovakia. It is also found in Great Britain, Ireland, France, Italy, southern Scandinavia, and other countries. [6] Its range includes Turkey. [7]
The species has been introduced to North America where it was first found in 1937 and now is known from six Canadian provinces (British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador) and 16 states, as well as the District of Columbia, in the United States. [8] It does not appear to have the capability to become an invasive pest species in North America, as it lives in leaf litter and forms colonies where the individuals do not tend to spread widely.
These gastropods live in forests and humid shady places, in dead wood logs, under stones, on humus and in soil litter, sometimes in colonies, at an elevation of 0–2,100 metres (0–6,890 ft) above sea level. [3] They can live both in natural habitats and in environments modified by humans, like gardens. [9] The species can tolerate substrate which is non-calcareous. [10]
The umbilicus of a shell is the axially aligned, hollow cone-shaped space within the whorls of a coiled mollusc shell. The term umbilicus is often used in descriptions of gastropod shells, i.e. it is a feature present on the ventral side of many snail shells, including some species of sea snails, land snails, and freshwater snails.
Zonitoides nitidus is a species of small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the family Gastrodontidae.
Fruticicola fruticum is a species of medium-sized, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the family Camaenidae.
Discus is a genus of small air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Discidae, the disk snails.
Oxychilus cellarius, common name cellar glass-snail, is a species of small air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Oxychilidae, the glass snails.
Cernuella virgata, also known as Helicella virgata, common name, the "vineyard snail", is a species of small, air-breathing land snail, a pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the family Geomitridae.
Cecilioides acicula, common name the "blind snail" or "blind awlsnail", is a species of very small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Ferussaciidae.
Cochlicopa lubrica is a species of small air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Cochlicopidae.
Carychium minimum is a species of very small air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Ellobiidae.
Zonitoides excavatus is a European species of small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Gastrodontidae.
Aegopinella pura is a species of small land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Gastrodontidae, the glass snails.
Aegopinella nitidula is a species of small land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Gastrodontidae, the glass snails.
Vallonia pulchella, common name the lovely vallonia, is a species of very small air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Valloniidae.
Vitrea contracta, the milky crystal snail, is a species of small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Pristilomatidae.
Vitrea crystallina is a species of small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Pristilomatidae.
Goweroconcha waterhousiae, also known as the cinnamon-zigzag pinwheel snail, is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the pinwheel snail family, that is endemic to Australia's Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea.
Goweroconcha wilsoni, also known as Gower Wilson's pinwheel snail, is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the pinwheel snail family, that is endemic to Australia's Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea.
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