Physa

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Physa
Physa fontinalis.jpg
Five shells of Physa fontinalis
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Superorder: Hygrophila
Superfamily: Lymnaeoidea
Family: Physidae
Genus: Physa
Draparnaud, 1801 [1]
Type species
Bulla fontinalis
Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms
  • LaurentiphysaTaylor, 2003 (a junior synonym)
  • Limnea (Physa)Draparnaud, 1801
  • Physa (Diastropha)Gray, 1840
  • Physa (Gyrina)Schumacher, 1817
  • Physa (Laurentiphysa)Taylor, 2003 (a junior synonym)
  • Physa (Mediterraneophysa)Starobogatov & Budnikova, 1976 (a junior synonym)
  • Physa (Physa)Draparnaud, 1801
  • Physa (Ussuriphysa)Starobogatov & Prozorova, 1989
  • RivicolaFitzinger, 1833 (Invalid: junior objective synonym of Physa, with the same type species)

Physa is a genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the subfamily Physinae of the family Physidae. [2]

Contents

These snails eat algae, diatoms and detritus.

Anatomy

Members of the freshwater pulmonate family Physidae possess a complex of muscles that is unique amongst gastropods. This complex was given the name "physid musculature". The physid musculature has two main components, the physid muscle sensu stricto and the fan muscle. The physid musculature is responsible for a unique ability of physids to rapidly flick their shells from side to side — a reaction that frequently enables them to escape predation.

Shell description

These small snails, like all the species in the family Physidae, have shells that are sinistral, which means that when the shell is held with the spire pointing up and the aperture facing the viewer, then the aperture is on the left-hand side.

The shells of Physa species have a long and large aperture, a pointed spire, and no operculum. The shells are thin and corneous, and rather transparent.

Species

Species in the genus include:

Synonyms

References

  1. Draparnaud J. P. R. (1801). Tableau des mollusques terrestres et fluviatiles de la France. – pp. [1–2], 1–116. Montpellier, Paris. (Renaud; Bossange, Masson & Besson).
  2. MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Physa Draparnaud, 1801. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=181551 on 2021-06-26
  3. Simone L. R. L. & Mezzalira S. (1994). "Fossil Molluscs of Brazil". Boletim do Instituto Geológico 11: 1–202.
  4. Ghilardi R. P., Carbonaro F. A. & Simone L. R. L. (2011). "Physa mezzalirai, a new cretaceous basommatophoran from Adamantina formation, Brazil". Strombus18(1–2): 1–14. abstract.
  5. COSEWIC. 2005. Canadian Species at Risk. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. 64 pp., page 13.
  6. "Physella". NatureServe Explorer, accessed 9 April 2010.
  7. Wethington A. R., Wise J. & Dillon R. T. (2009). "Genetic and morphological characterization of the Physidae of South Carolina (Pulmonata: Basommatophora), with description of a new species". The Nautilus 123: 282–292. PDF Archived 2012-08-23 at the Wayback Machine .
  8. 1 2 Appleton C. C. & Dana P. (2005). "Re-examination of Physa mosambiquensis Clessin, 1886 and its relationship with other Aplexinae (Pulmonata: Physidae) reported from Africa". African Invertebrates 46: 71–83. abstract Archived 2010-11-04 at the Wayback Machine