Small amber snail
| Small amber snail | ||||||||||||
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Succinella oblonga |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Succinella | ||||||||||||
| Mabille, 1870 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Succinella oblonga | ||||||||||||
| ( Draparnaud , 1801) |
The small amber snail ( Succinella oblonga ) is a type of snail belonging to the family of amber snails (Succineidae) from the suborder of land snails (Stylommatophora). It is the only species in the genus Succinella Mabille, 1871.
features
The relatively thick-walled, right-hand winding shell of the small amber snail is up to 8 mm high, up to 4.5 mm wide and has 3 to 3½ strongly curved whorls that are separated from each other by a deep seam. Housing size as well as the height-to-width ratio are highly variable. The last passage is greatly inflated, the mouth height takes up about half to a little more than half of the total height. The shell is opaque, the surface matt. The surface shows coarse and somewhat irregular growth strips. The housing is amber-colored on the coast, inland rather pale yellowish-gray to greenish-white. Often the surface is covered with a layer of dirt and / or excrement for camouflage. The soft body is usually colored dark gray.
In the hermaphroditic genital apparatus, the thin and very long sperm duct is twisted in on itself. It flows into the penis at the apex; the transition is not clearly marked. The penile retractor muscle attaches to the vas deferens just before the diameter of the vas deferens increases. An actual epiphallus is missing. The basal half of the penis is surrounded by a penis sheath. In the area of the penis sheath, the inside of the penis has smooth longitudinal folds, in the distal area, where the diameter is already decreasing, there are wavy longitudinal folds inside. The prostate gland is very compact. The vagina is comparatively long and wide; it lacks a muscle collar. The stem of the seminal vesicle (spermathec) is moderately long.
Similar species
Succinella oblonga (Draparnaud, 1801) resembles the salt amber snail ( Quickella arenaria (Potiez & Michaud, 1838)), but the shell is usually taller in this species, the whorls are more arched and increase more rapidly; fewer whorls are formed at the same height. The mouth is almost round and the growth strips are coarser. A reliable distinction between the two types is only possible by examining the genital apparatus. In the salt amber snail, the spermatic duct, fallopian tube and vagina are much shorter. The penis is without a penis sheath, the spermatic duct opens into the apex of the penis without increasing in thickness beforehand. The retractor muscle attaches to the apex of the penis. The stem of the seminal vesicle is much longer.
Way of life and reproduction
The animals usually live individually. Mating takes place twice a year, in May and July. accordingly, eggs are also deposited individually in May and August. The eggs are 0.5 mm in diameter. Development in the egg takes 14 to 15 days. The overwintering takes place as half-grown individuals. The service life is 1½ to 1¾ years. Juvenile specimens are easily moved to other habitats by birds.
Geographical distribution and habitat
The species prefers moist, little overgrown locations, such as B. the floodplains of the rivers, silting zones of the lakes, swamps with little vegetation, but also occurs on wet meadows, on rain and forest edges, under bushes, at the foot of walls, under rocks and light forests away from the water. It is typically found on parched mud flats where it grazes the algae layer. But it also eats young leaves of herbaceous plants, petals and rotting plant material. Occasionally she also eats animal protein, i.e. carrion.
The species occurs almost in the whole of Europe and in northern western Asia, but always very locally. In the north the distribution area extends to about 61 ° north latitude. It is also rather rare in the British Isles and southern Europe. It is also not common in Asia Minor. In Switzerland it was found at an altitude of 2100 m, in Bulgaria up to 1300 m above sea level.
Taxonomy
The taxon was established in 1801 by Jacques Philippe Raymond Draparnaud . Jules Mabille hit 1870 genus Succinella before and listed five types as the new taxon belonging: Succinea lutetiana Mabille, 1870, Succinea oblonga Draparnaud, 1801 Succinea oblonga var. Humilis Mabille, 1870, Succinea arenaria Bouchard-Chantereaux, 1838 and Succinea baudonii Bourguignat , 1856. Almost all older authors regarded succinella as a synonym for succinea . That is why it was Caesar-Rudolf Boettger who first determined a type; i. e. Succinea oblonga Draparnaud, 1801. This species is not only the type species determined by Boettger later, but is now also the only species in the genus Succinella . The other species identified by Mabille as succinella are younger synonyms or have been assigned to other genera. The genus Succinella is now widely recognized. Hydrophyga Lindholm, 1927 is a more recent, objective synonym for Succinella . The genus is based on the same type species; i. e. Succinea oblonga Draparnaud, 1801.
Danger
The species is not endangered in Germany.
supporting documents
literature
- Klaus Bogon: Land snails biology, ecology, biotope protection. 404 p., Natur Verlag, Augsburg 1990 ISBN 3-89440-002-1
- Rosina Fechter and Gerhard Falkner: molluscs. 287 pp., Mosaik-Verlag, Munich 1990 (Steinbach's Nature Guide 10) ISBN 3-570-03414-3
- Ewald Frömming: Biology of the Central European Landgastropods. 404 p., Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1954
- Michael P. Kerney, RAD Cameron & Jürgen H. Jungbluth: The land snails of Northern and Central Europe. 384 pp., Paul Parey, Hamburg & Berlin 1983 ISBN 3-490-17918-8
- Anatolij A. Schileyko: Treatise on Recent terrestrial pulmonate molluscs, Part 15 Oopeltidae, Anadenidae, Arionidae, Philomycidae, Succineidae, Athoracophoridae. Ruthenica, Supplement 2: 2049-2210, Moscow 2007 ISSN 0136-0027
- Francisco W. Welter-Schultes: European non-marine molluscs, a guide for species identification = identification book for European land and freshwater mollusks. A1-A3 S., 679 S., Q1-Q78 S., Göttingen, Planet Poster Ed., 2012 ISBN 3-933922-75-5 , ISBN 978-3-933922-75-5
- Vollrath Wiese: Germany's land snails. 352 p., Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2014 ISBN 978-3-494-01551-4 (p. 44)
On-line
Individual evidence
- ^ Jacques Philippe Raymond Draparnaud: Tableau des mollusques terrestres et fluviatiles de la France. Pp. 1-116. Montpellier, Paris, Renaud; Bossange, Masson & Besson, 1801. Online at www.biodiversitylibrary.org (p. 56)
- ↑ Jules Mabille: Histoire malacologique du Bassin Parisien ou histoire naturelle des animaux mollusques terrestres et fluviatiles qui vivent dans les environs de Paris. Premier fascicule. Pp. 1–128, Plates I-II, Paris, Bouchard-Huzard, 1871 Online at www.biodiversitylibrary.org (p. 82).
- ↑ Caesar-Rudolf Boettger: On the nomenclature of the European amber snails (Fam. Succineidae). Archives for Molluscology, 76 (4/6): 189-190, 1947.
- ^ Molluscs of central Europe Genus Succinella Mabille, 1871
- ^ Wiese, Vollrath 2014: The land snails of Germany. 352 pp., Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim ISBN 978-3-494-01551-4 (p. 44)
