Lithoglyphus naticoides
Encyclopedia
Lithoglyphus naticoides, common name the "gravel snail", is a species
of small or minute freshwater snail
with an operculum
, an aquatic
gastropod mollusk in the family
Lithoglyphidae
.
Lithoglyphus naticoides is the type species
of the genus Lithoglyphus.
ranged from Western Europe to Western Siberia
. Its distribution has shrinked to Ponto-Azov
area in cooler eras.
Distribution of this species is Pontic
. Native distribution include only in Black Sea rivers and Danube
up to Regensburg
, from south estern to central Europe.
It artificially colonized also other parts of Europe. After 1800 it introduced to Elbe
and Rhine regions.
After 1960 it has became almost extinct due to water pollution in central Europe.
This snail is found in the following countries:
Western Europe:
Central Europe:
Eastern Europe:
Asia:
North America:
and the operculum
of this species is reminiscent of the shell and the operculum of the marine moon snails or Naticidae
(for example, the Northern moon snail
).
The shell is globular, light grey to greenish yellow or dark. The shell has 4.5-5 whorls
. The last whorl is predominating. Dimensions of the shell are 7-10 mm × 7-10 mm. Or the width of the shell is 6.5-8 mm. The height of the shell is 7-9 mm.
Animal has broad foot. Males often smaller than females.
up to 3 ‰.
Lithoglyphus naticoides feeds on diatome
s and green alga.
The life cycle of Lithoglyphus naticoides takes one year. Reproduction of Lithoglyphus naticoides is mainly in July. The morphology of egg capsules has been described by Berezkina (2010). The life span is 4-5 years.
Parasites of Lithoglyphus naticoides include:
grave in Lower Austria
as a head decoration.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of small or minute freshwater snail
Freshwater snail
A freshwater snail is one kind of freshwater mollusc, the other kind being freshwater clams and mussels, i.e. freshwater bivalves. Specifically a freshwater snail is a gastropod that lives in a watery non-marine habitat. The majority of freshwater gastropods have a shell, with very few exceptions....
with an operculum
Operculum (gastropod)
The operculum, meaning little lid, is a corneous or calcareous anatomical structure which exists in many groups of sea snails and freshwater snails, and also in a few groups of land snails...
, an aquatic
Aquatic animal
An aquatic animal is an animal, either vertebrate or invertebrate, which lives in water for most or all of its life. It may breathe air or extract its oxygen from that dissolved in water through specialised organs called gills, or directly through its skin. Natural environments and the animals that...
gastropod mollusk in the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Lithoglyphidae
Lithoglyphidae
Lithoglyphidae is a family of small freshwater snails with gills and an operculum, aquatic gastropod mollusks.This family is in the superfamily Rissooidea and in the clade Littorinimorpha .- Taxonomy :Taylor , Ponder & Warén and Kabat & Hershler considered this taxon as a subfamily...
.
Lithoglyphus naticoides is the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
of the genus Lithoglyphus.
Distribution
Distribution of Lithoglyphus naticoides in PliocenePliocene
The Pliocene Epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 2.588 million years before present. It is the second and youngest epoch of the Neogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Pliocene follows the Miocene Epoch and is followed by the Pleistocene Epoch...
ranged from Western Europe to Western Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. Its distribution has shrinked to Ponto-Azov
Azov
-External links:** *...
area in cooler eras.
Distribution of this species is Pontic
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
. Native distribution include only in Black Sea rivers and Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
up to Regensburg
Regensburg
Regensburg is a city in Bavaria, Germany, located at the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers, at the northernmost bend in the Danube. To the east lies the Bavarian Forest. Regensburg is the capital of the Bavarian administrative region Upper Palatinate...
, from south estern to central Europe.
It artificially colonized also other parts of Europe. After 1800 it introduced to Elbe
Elbe
The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Krkonoše Mountains of the northwestern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia , then Germany and flowing into the North Sea at Cuxhaven, 110 km northwest of Hamburg...
and Rhine regions.
After 1960 it has became almost extinct due to water pollution in central Europe.
This snail is found in the following countries:
Western Europe:
- Netherlands
- France
Central Europe:
- Austria
- Czech Republic - endangered in Moravia
- Germany - high endangered (Stark gefährdet) It is critically endangered in Sachsen-Anhalt and in Baden-WürttembergBaden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
. - Poland - endangered, non-indigenous
- Slovakia
Eastern Europe:
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Belarus
- Ukraine
- Russia It was found in the delta of Volga river in 1971. It has spread upstream since 1971 inhabiting also reservoirs including: Volgograd ReservoirVolgograd ReservoirThe Volgograd Reservoir is a reservoir in Russia formed at the Volga River by the dam of the Volga Hydroelectric Station. It lies within the Volgograd Oblast and Saratov Oblast and named after the city of Volgograd. It was constructed during 1958-1961....
, Saratov ReservoirSaratov ReservoirSaratov Reservoir is an artificial lake in the lower part of the Volga River in Russia formed by a the dam of the Saratov Hydroelectric Station situated in the city of Balakovo. Filling of the reservoir started in 1967. The uppermost point of the reservoir is situated in Tolyatti, it stretches...
, Kuybyshev Reservoir and Gorky ReservoirGorky ReservoirGorky Reservoir is an artificial lake in the central part of the Volga River formed by a hydroelectric dam of Gorky Hydroelectric Station built in 1955 between the towns of Gorodets and Zavolzhye and filled in 1955 – 1957...
. - Turkey
Asia:
- Bukhtarminskoe Reservoir on the Irtysh River in Kazakhstan It has reached density 700 snails per m² there.
North America:
- Great LakesGreat LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
Description
This species is called "naticoides" because in shape and general appearance the shellGastropod shell
The gastropod shell is a shell which is part of the body of a gastropod or snail, one kind of mollusc. The gastropod shell is an external skeleton or exoskeleton, which serves not only for muscle attachment, but also for protection from predators and from mechanical damage...
and the operculum
Operculum (gastropod)
The operculum, meaning little lid, is a corneous or calcareous anatomical structure which exists in many groups of sea snails and freshwater snails, and also in a few groups of land snails...
of this species is reminiscent of the shell and the operculum of the marine moon snails or Naticidae
Naticidae
Naticidae, common name the moon snails, is a family of minute to large-sized predatory sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Littorinimorpha.Naticidae is the only family in the superfamily Naticoidea....
(for example, the Northern moon snail
Northern moon snail
The northern moon snail, scientific name Euspira heros, is a species of large sea snail, a predatory marine gastropod mollusk in the family Naticidae, the moon snails or necklace snails ....
).
The shell is globular, light grey to greenish yellow or dark. The shell has 4.5-5 whorls
Whorl (mollusc)
A whorl is a single, complete 360° revolution or turn in the spiral growth of a mollusc shell. A spiral configuration of the shell is found in of numerous gastropods, but it is also found in shelled cephalopods including Nautilus, Spirula and the large extinct subclass of cephalopods known as the...
. The last whorl is predominating. Dimensions of the shell are 7-10 mm × 7-10 mm. Or the width of the shell is 6.5-8 mm. The height of the shell is 7-9 mm.
 |
Animal has broad foot. Males often smaller than females.
Ecology
It lives in rivers, lakes, channels and in reservoirs. In rivers it lives at sites with low water currents, on solid muddy soils and at stones. It requires high oxygen and calcium carbonate contents. The population diversity reached up to 3.300 snails per m² according to Krause (1949). It can live in salinitySalinity
Salinity is the saltiness or dissolved salt content of a body of water. It is a general term used to describe the levels of different salts such as sodium chloride, magnesium and calcium sulfates, and bicarbonates...
up to 3 ‰.
Lithoglyphus naticoides feeds on diatome
Diatome
Diatome was a British-bred Thoroughbred racehorse owned and bred by the French banker, Baron Guy de Rothschild.A descendant of Prince Palatine, Diatome won important races in France but had the bad luck of being foaled the same year as superstars Sea Bird and Reliance. He finished second to...
s and green alga.
The life cycle of Lithoglyphus naticoides takes one year. Reproduction of Lithoglyphus naticoides is mainly in July. The morphology of egg capsules has been described by Berezkina (2010). The life span is 4-5 years.
Parasites of Lithoglyphus naticoides include:
- It serves as the first intermediate hostIntermediate hostA secondary host or intermediate host is a host that harbors the parasite only for a short transition period, during which some developmental stage is completed. For trypanosomes, the cause of sleeping sickness, humans are the primary host, while the tsetse fly is the secondary host...
for Nicolla skrjabiniNicolla skrjabiniNicolla skrjabini is a species of trematode in the family Opecoelidae.- Distribution :The distribution of Nicolla skrjabini includes rivers of the Azov-Black Sea and rivers of the Baltic Sea...
(Iwanitzki, 1928) - It serves as a the first intermediate host for Apophallus muehlingi (Jägerskiöld, 1898)
- It serves as a intermediate host for Apophallus donicus (Skrjabin & Lindtrop, 1919)
Human use
Perforated shells of Lithoglyphus naticoides were found in a NeolithicNeolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
grave in Lower Austria
Lower Austria
Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...
as a head decoration.