Atopos

Atopos
	Atopos slug attacking Plectostoma concinnum by shell-drilling.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Heterobranchia; clade Euthyneura; clade Panpulmonata; clade Eupulmonata; clade Systellommatophora
Superfamily:	Veronicelloidea
Family:	Rathouisiidae
Genus:	Atopos; Simroth, 1891
Diversity
	10 species

Atopos is a genus of carnivorous air-breathing land slugs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Rathouisiidae.

Species

Species within the genus Atopos include:

Atopos aborense (Ghosh, 1913)
Atopos australis Heynemann, 1876
Atopos cristagalli P. Sarasin & F. Sarasin, 1899
Atopos galeatus Simroth, 1920
Atopos harmeri Collinge, 1902
Atopos kempii Ghose, 1913^[2]
Atopos leuckarti Simroth, 1891^[1]
Atopos laidlawi Collinge, 1902
Atopos maximus Collinge 1903^[3]
Atopos ouwensi Collinge, 1908
Atopos prismatica Tapparone-Canefri, 1883
Atopos pristis P. Sarasin & F. Sarasin, 1899
Atopos punctata Collinge, 1902
Atopos rugosus Collinge, 1902^[3]
Atopos sanguinolentus Ghosh, 1912
Atopos sarasini Collinge 1902^[3]
Atopos schildii Babor, 1900
Atopos scutulatus P. Sarasin & F. Sarasin, 1899
Atopos semperi Simroth, 1891^[1]
Atopos simrothi P. Sarasin & F. Sarasin, 1899
Atopos smithi (Collinge, 1902)
Atopos strubelli Simroth, 1891
Atopos tourannensis (Eydoux & Souleyet, 1852)

Synonyms:

Atopos leonina (Heude, 1882) is a synonym of Rathouisia leonina Heude, 1882^{[citation needed]}

Distribution

The predatory carnivorous slugs in the genus Atopos are found in peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, New Guinea, northeast Australia and, recently, Singapore.

Feeding habits

*Atopos* sp. slug proboscis (marked with red outline) (the proboscis was not fully extended).

Bornean Atopos specialising in Opisthostoma are known to tailor their approach to the size of the prey. They hold small snails with the shells aperture-upward with the front of its foot and eat their way down. Larger ones scrape away the shell to allow access through the spire. This behaviour is thought to drive the evolution of shell ornamentation in Opisthostoma.^[4]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c (in German) Simroth H. (1891). "Über das Vaginuludengenus Atopos n. g.". Zeitschrift für wissenschaftliche Zoologie 52: 593-616. plate 37. page 593.
^ Liew T.-S. & Schilthuizen M. (2014). "Association between shell morphology of micro-land snails (genus Plectostoma) and their predator’s predatory behaviour". PeerJ 2: e329. doi:10.7717/peerj.329.
^ ^a ^b ^c Laidlaw F. F. (1940). "Notes on some specimens of the genus Atopos (Mollusca Pulmonata) with microphotographs illustrating points in the anatomy of the genus". The Bulletin of the Raffles Museum 16: 121-132. PDF Archived 2014-11-29 at the Wayback Machine.
^ Tan S. K. & Chan S-Y. (2009). "New records of predatory slugs from Singapore with notes on their feeding behaviour". Nature in Singapore 2: 1-7. PDF.

External links

photo of predating by Atopos (figure b)

[Simroth_1891-1] (in German) Simroth H. (1891). "Über das Vaginuludengenus Atopos n. g.". Zeitschrift für wissenschaftliche Zoologie 52: 593-616. plate 37. page 593.

[Liew_2014-2] Liew T.-S. & Schilthuizen M. (2014). "Association between shell morphology of micro-land snails (genus Plectostoma) and their predator’s predatory behaviour". PeerJ 2: e329. doi:10.7717/peerj.329.

[Laidlaw_1940-3] Laidlaw F. F. (1940). "Notes on some specimens of the genus Atopos (Mollusca Pulmonata) with microphotographs illustrating points in the anatomy of the genus". The Bulletin of the Raffles Museum 16: 121-132. PDF Archived 2014-11-29 at the Wayback Machine.

[4] Tan S. K. & Chan S-Y. (2009). "New records of predatory slugs from Singapore with notes on their feeding behaviour". Nature in Singapore 2: 1-7. PDF.

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