Helix ceratina

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Helix ceratina
Escargot de Corse dans son milieu naturel.jpg
Tyrrhenaria ceratina (MNHN-IM-2010-13180).jpeg
Shell of Helix ceratina (specimen at MNHN, Paris)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Order: Stylommatophora
Superfamily: Helicoidea
Family: Helicidae
Subfamily: Helicinae
Tribe: Helicini
Genus: Helix
Species:
H. ceratina
Binomial name
Helix ceratina
Shuttleworth, 1843) [2]
Synonyms
  • Helix tristisPfeiffer, 1845
  • Tyrrhenaria ceratina(Shuttleworth, 1843) (chresonym)

Helix ceratina, the Corsican snail, [1] is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Helicidae, the typical snails. [3]

For a species of Helix, H. ceratina is a small snail of shell diameter max. 24 mm (28 in fossil individuals). [4] The shell is olive-brown, with darker bands, and thin-walled.

This species is endemic to Corsica. The only known extant population lives at Campo dell’Oro near the Ajaccio airport. The inhabited area was estimated at 0.34 km². [5] However, the species was distributed more widely in prehistoric times, as fossil shells were found at three other localities on the shore (Bastia: Toga, Piana: Plage d'Arone, Bonifacio). [4] At the site in Bonifacio, the shells were dated to the Neolithic (5600-5000 BC and 3000-2500 BC, respectively; [4] only the older date is mentioned in a later publication [5] ). Repeated searches since the 1990's did not reveal any populations additional to that near Ajaccio. [4]

Although still sometimes classified in a monotypic genus Tyrrhenaria, [5] the species is a member of the genus Helix, related to species such as Helix ligata and Helix melanostoma. [6] [7]

It inhabits biotopes on granitic sands near the shore, with vegetation characterized by Crucianella maritima , Scrophularia ramosissima and Genista salzmannii ssp. salzmannii. [4] [8] The snails prefer sites where the vegetation is open and the surface is not covered by lichens. [4] They are active during the night from October to June, if it rains. [4] During dry and hot periods, the snails dig up to 60 cm into the soil and form a convex, calcareous epiphragm. [8]

Mating was observed in captivity from late August to mid-October. Eggs were layed 3-5 days after mating. Eggs are large (diameter 5-7 mm) and ovoid. Clutch size between 6 and 19 was recorded; eggs are laid into underground nests. Hatching takes place after 15-16 days. Shells of the newly hatched juveniles measure 5-6 mm. [4]

Helix ceratina feeds on fresh leaves in the spring, but the diet changes to decaying plant matter in the autumn. Genista salzmannii is the most important part of the diet (found in 80% of faeces); Matthiola sinuata , Jasione montana and grasses are also eaten. [9] In captivity, the snails were observed to ingest the sand substrate. [4]

Related Research Articles

<i>Helix</i> (gastropod) Genus of gastropods

Helix is a genus of large, air-breathing land snails native to the western Palaearctic and characterized by a globular shell.

<i>Cornu aspersum</i> Species of edible land snail

Cornu aspersum, known by the common name garden snail, is a species of land snail in the family Helicidae, which includes some of the most familiar land snails. Of all terrestrial molluscs, this species may well be the most widely known. It was classified under the name Helix aspersa for over two centuries, but the prevailing classification now places it in the genus Cornu.

<i>Helix pomatia</i> Species of gastropod

Helix pomatia, known as the Roman snail, Burgundy snail, or escargot, is a species of large, air-breathing stylommatophoran land snail native to Europe. It is characterized by a globular brown shell. It is an edible species which commonly occurs synanthropically throughout its range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helicidae</span> Family of gastropods

Helicidae is a large, diverse family of western Palaearctic, medium to large-sized, air-breathing land snails, sometimes called the "typical snails." It includes some of the largest European land snails, several species are common in anthropogenic habitats, and some became invasive on other continents. A number of species in this family are valued as food items, including Cornu aspersum the brown or garden snail, and Helix pomatia. The biologies of these two species in particular have been thoroughly studied and documented.

<i>Arianta arbustorum</i> Species of gastropod

Arianta arbustorum, sometimes known as the copse snail, is a medium-sized species of pulmonate land snail in the family Helicidae.

<i>Helix lucorum</i> Species of gastropod

Helix lucorum is a species of large, edible, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Helicidae, the typical snails.

<i>Caucasotachea vindobonensis</i> Species of gastropod

Caucasotachea vindobonensis is a large species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod in the family Helicidae.

<i>Tyrrhenaria</i> Genus of gastropods

Tyrrhenaria is a genus of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Helicidae, the typical snails.

Helix nucula is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Helicidae, the typical snails. It has a rounded shell with white aperture margins; it differs from the similar Helix figulina by fine spiral grooves on the upper shell surface. Previously, the name H. nucula was used also for Helix pronuba, an unrelated species occurring in North Africa and on Crete, creating some confusion in the literature.

<i>Caucasotachea</i> Genus of gastropods

Caucasotachea is a genus of medium-sized air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the family Helicidae.

<i>Helix albescens</i> Species of snail

Helix albescens is a species of large air-breathing land snail from eastern Europe belonging to the family Helicidae.

<i>Helix cincta</i> Species of mollusc

Helix cincta is a species of gastropods belonging to the family Helicidae.

<i>Helix borealis</i> Land snail species

Helix borealis is a species of large, air-breathing land snail native to Greece and the south-west of Anatolia. It is characterized by brown to dark brown margins of the shell aperture. For decades, the species has been considered synonymous with Helix cincta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helicini</span> Tribe of molluscs

Helicini is a tribe of terrestrial gastropods in the family Helicidae. It contains mostly large land snail species, diversified in particular in the Balkans, Anatolia, and the Caucasus.

<i>Helix vladika</i> Species of land snail

Helix vladika is a species of large, air-breathing land snail native to Montenegro and Serbia. It has a brown, conical shell. It is the largest land snail species in Europe. Typical habitat are beech forests. The species is closely related to Helix straminea.

<i>Helix buchii</i> Species of land snail

Helix buchii is a species of large, air-breathing land snail native to northeastern Turkey, Georgia, and northern Armenia.

<i>Helix dormitoris</i> Species of land snail

Helix dormitoris is a species of large, air-breathing land snail native to mountainous regions of Montenegro, eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina and western Serbia.

Maltzanella is a genus of terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Helicidae, the typical snails. It has two known species distributed in Turkey. The shell is similar to Helix, which is the sister lineage to Maltzanella.

<i>Helix thessalica</i> Species of snail

Helix thessalica is a species of large, air-breathing land snail native to Europe. It is externally similar to Helix pomatia, but has a dark grey penis and vagina. The species has been long considered synonymous with H. pomatia.

<i>Helix straminea</i> Species of snail

Helix straminea is a species of large, air-breathing land snail native to North Macedonia, Albania and Italy.

References

  1. 1 2 Falkner, M.; Falkner, G.; von Proschwitz, T. & Charrier, M. (2011). "Helix ceratina". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2011: e.T9843A13020602. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-2.RLTS.T9843A13020602.en . Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  2. ↑ (in German) Shuttleworth R. J. 1843. Über die Land- und Süsswasser-Mollusken von Corsica. Mittheilungen der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft in Bern 1843 (2/3): 9-21.
  3. ↑ MolluscaBase eds. (2022). MolluscaBase. Helix ceratina Shuttleworth, 1843. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1549519 on 2022-12-09
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Bouchet, Philippe; Ripken, Théo; Recorbet, Bernard (1997). "Redécouverte de l'Escargot de Corse Helix ceratina au bord de l'extinction". Revue d'Écologie (La Terre et La Vie). 52 (2): 97–111.
  5. 1 2 3 Camus, Louise; Poli, Pedro; Delaugerre, Michel-Jean; Dréano, Stéphane; Cucherat, Xavier; Natali, Christine; Guiller, Annie (2023-10-01). "Unexpected and spatially structured genetic diversity of the relict population of the endangered corsican land snail Tyrrhenaria ceratina". Conservation Genetics. 24 (5): 661–672. doi:10.1007/s10592-023-01535-0. ISSN   1572-9737.
  6. ↑ Fiorentino, V.; Manganelli, G.; Giusti, F.; Ketmaier, V. (2016). "Recent expansion and relic survival: Phylogeography of the land snail genus Helix (Mollusca, Gastropoda) from south to north Europe". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution . 98: 358–372. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2016.02.017.
  7. ↑ Korábek, Ondřej; Kosová, Tereza; Dolejš, Petr; Petrusek, Adam; Neubert, Eike; Juřičková, Lucie (2021-11-29). "Geographic isolation and human-assisted dispersal in land snails: a Mediterranean story of Helix borealis and its relatives (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora: Helicidae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 193 (4): 1310–1335. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa186. ISSN   0024-4082.
  8. 1 2 Lecoq, M. (1851). "Note sur les moeurs de l'Helix tristis (Pfeiffer)". Journal de conchyliologie. 2: 146–151.
  9. ↑ Charrier, Maryvonne; Chevalier, Laure; Paradis, Guilhan; Recorbet, Bernard (2005). "Field observations on spatial distribution and diet in the terrestrial snail Tyrrhenaria ceratina, an endemic species from Corsica". Notiziario S.I.M., Supplemento al Bollettino Malacologico. 23 (5–8): 8.


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