Amargosa springsnail
Encyclopedia
The Amargosa springsnail (Pyrgulopsis amargosae) is a snail
in the family Hydrobiidae
. It is endemic to the Amargosa River
drainage of the southwestern United States. The small (1.5–-2.7 mm high) snail is known to occur in several near-brackish
springs, including the type locality of Saratoga Springs
in Death Valley
.
Snail
Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
in the family Hydrobiidae
Hydrobiidae
Hydrobiidae, common name mud snails, is a large cosmopolitan taxonomic family of very small freshwater snails and brackish water snails that have an operculum, aquatic gastropod mollusks in the clade Littorinimorpha.- Distribution :...
. It is endemic to the Amargosa River
Amargosa River
The Amargosa River is an intermittent waterway, long, in southern Nevada and eastern California in the United States. It drains a high desert region, the Amargosa Valley in the Amargosa Desert northwest of Las Vegas, into the Mojave Desert, and finally into Death Valley where it disappears into...
drainage of the southwestern United States. The small (1.5–-2.7 mm high) snail is known to occur in several near-brackish
Brackish water
Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuaries, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers. The word comes from the Middle Dutch root "brak," meaning "salty"...
springs, including the type locality of Saratoga Springs
Saratoga Springs (Death Valley)
Saratoga Springs is a desert oasis located in southern Death Valley National Park in California. The wetland lies at the southern tip of the Ibex Hills, on the floor of Death Valley and just northeast of the Amargosa River. Several springs overflow into pools totaling 6.6 acres in area, making the...
in Death Valley
Death Valley
Death Valley is a desert valley located in Eastern California. Situated within the Mojave Desert, it features the lowest, driest, and hottest locations in North America. Badwater, a basin located in Death Valley, is the specific location of the lowest elevation in North America at 282 feet below...
.