Arianta arbustorum
| Arianta arbustorum | |
|---|---|
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| Arianta arbustorum | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| (unranked): | clade Heterobranchia clade Euthyneura |
| Superfamily: | Helicoidea |
| Family: | Helicidae |
| Subfamily: | Ariantinae |
| Genus: | Arianta |
| Species: | A. arbustorum |
| Binomial name | |
| Arianta arbustorum Linnaeus, 1758[1] |
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| Synonyms | |
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Helix arbustorum Linnaeus, 1758 |
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Arianta arbustorum is a medium-sized species of land snail, sometimes known as the "copse snail", a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Helicidae.
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[edit] Subspecies
Several subspecies are recognized by some authors:
- Arianta arbustorum alpicola Férussac, 1821
- Arianta arbustorum arbustorum
- Arianta arbustorum canigonensis
- Arianta arbustorum picea
- Arianta arbustorum pseudorudis
- Arianta arbustorum repellini
- Arianta arbustorum styriaca
- Arianta arbustorum vareliensis
[edit] Distribution
This species is native to Europe:
- North-western and central Europe with Alps and Carpathians[2]
- Netherlands[3]
- Austria
- Czech Republic
- Slovakia
- Poland
- Switzerland. One of the most frequent species of land snails in Switzerland, can be very abundant, up to 20 adults per square meter.[2]
- eastern Pyrenees, Spain[2]
- Norway[2]
- Iceland[2]
- the British Isles: Great Britain and Ireland[2] In Britain the species suffered slightly from intensive farming and the continuous destructions of suitable uncultivated refuges.[2] It is rare in Ireland.[2]
- Kaliningrad[2]
- Finland. In Finland, it has become so common in the Porvoo region east of Helsinki, that it is locally called the "Porvoo snail".
- Estonia[2]
- Latvia[2]
- scattered to Serbia[2]
- Bulgaria[2]Its is rare in Bulgaria.[2]
- western Ukraine[2]
This species has not yet become established in the USA, but it is considered to represent a potentially serious threat as a pest, an invasive species which could negatively affect agriculture, natural ecosystems, human health or commerce. Therefore it has been suggested that this species be given top national quarantine significance in the USA.[4]
[edit] Description
The shell is usually brown with numerous pale yellowish rows of spots and usually with a brown band above the periphery, occasionally yellowish, reddish or with greenish hue, weakly striated and with fine spiral lines on the upper side.[2] The shell has 5-5.5 convex whorls with deep suture.[2] The last whorl is slightly descending near the aperture.[2] The aperture is with prominent white lip inside.[2] The apertural margin is reflected.[2] Umbilicus is entirely covered by the reflected columellar margin.[2]
The width of the shell is 18-25 mm.[2] The height of the shell is 12-22 mm.[2] Dimensions are locally variable.[2]
The shell shape is globular in most present-day populations, but originally is believed to have been depressed in the Pleistocene, before lowlands were invaded and shells became globular, re-invading mountain regions except some isolated spots among glaciers.[2]
The animal is usually black.[2]
[edit] Life cycle
Arianta arbustorum lives in forests and open habitats of any kind.[2] It requires humidity.[2] It lives also in disturbed habitats (not in Ireland where it is restricted to old native woodland).[2] It may locally tolerate non-calcareous substrate, in north Scotland also on sandhills.[2] In the Alps up to 2700 m, in Britain 1200 m, in Bulgaria 1500 m.[2]
It feeds on green herbs, dead animals and faeces.[2]
If snails hatched more than 50 m distant from each other, they are considered isolated since they would not move more than 25 m (neighbourhood area 32-50 m), usually they move about 7-12 m in a year, mostly along water currents.[2]
This species of snail makes and uses calcareous love darts during mating. Reproduction is usually after copulation, but self-fertilization is also possible.[2] The size of the egg is 3.2 mm.[5] Maturity is reached after 2-4 years.[2] The maximum age up to 14 years.[2]
Angiostrongylus vasorum has successfully experimentally infected this snail.[6]
[edit] References
This article incorporates public domain text from the reference [2].
- ^ Linnaeus C. (1758). Systema naturae per regna tria naturæ, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. pp. [1-4], 1-824. Holmiae. (Salvius).
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak Species summary for Arianta arbustorum. AnimalBase, last modified 25 August 2010, accessed 8 October 2010.
- ^ (Dutch) Arianta arbustorum — Anemoon
- ^ Cowie R. H., Dillon R. T., Robinson D. G. & Smith J. W. (2009). "Alien non-marine snails and slugs of priority quarantine importance in the United States: A preliminary risk assessment". American Malacological Bulletin 27: 113-132. PDF.
- ^ Heller J.: Life History Strategies. in Barker G. M. (ed.): The biology of terrestrial molluscs. CABI Publishing, Oxon, UK, 2001, ISBN 0-85199-318-4. 1-146, cited page: 428.
- ^ Conboy G. A. (30 May 2000) "Canine Angiostrongylosis (French Heartworm)". In: Bowman D. D. (Ed.) Companion and Exotic Animal Parasitology. International Veterinary Information Service. Accessed 24 November 2009.
[edit] External links
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