Adams’ Anoma Snail was described in 1903, the species is, or maybe was, restricted to a small area near Ulster Spring, a settlement in the Trelawny Parish in the northwest of Jamaica.
“Surface is glossy, very finely striate throughout; the last third of the last whorl becoming more coarsely rib-striate. Bluish-milky, touched with light brown at the summit; the base, back of the lip and adjecent surface, brownish-fleshy. The keel, a subsutural line on the last whorl, and a wide arcuate stripe (behind the fleshy lip-stripe) are opaque-white; and behind the white stripe there is a second fleshy-brown oblique area, fading on its right side into the blue-white ground-color. These colors show within the mouth. The well-expanded lip is flesh-pink and but slightly thickened, somewhat sinuous, and a little retracted at both ends. Columnella distinctly truncate in oblique view. Length 19.3, diam. 5, length of aperture 4,6 mm., whorls 10.” [1]
The species was not found during recent surveys and might be extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 16: Urocoptidae, Achatinidae. 1904
[2]
Gary Rosenberg; Igor Muratov: Status Report on the Terrestrial Mollusca of Jamaica. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 155: 117-161. 2006
Germain’s Melanopsis Spring Snail (Melanopsis germaini)
Germain’s Melanopsis Spring Snail was described in 1939; the species is known only from its type localities: the small rivers Nahr as Sinnah and Nahr az Zayrūd between the cities of Baniyas and Jableh on the Syrian coast to the Mediterranean Sea. [1]
Only the lower parts of these rivers still contain water, which is heavily polluted, thus the snail’s habitat appears to be lost now.
Germain’s Melanopsis Spring Snail was last recorded in 1955, it is now probably extinct.
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References:
[1] Joseph Heller; Peter Mordan; Frida Ben-Ami; Naomi Sivan: Conchometrics, systematics and distribution of Melanopsis (Mollusca: Gastropoda) in the Levant. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 144: 229-260. 2005
This species was described in 2018; it is known only from subfossil shells that were found in deposits near the south-eastern shores of Porto Santo, Madeira.
The species disappeared before the scientific exploration of the island. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018
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Photo from: ‘Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018’
Aubert de la Rüe’ Pseudolibera Snail (Pseudolibera aubertdelaruei)
Aubert de la Rüe’ Pseudolibera Snail was described in 2014, it is known from only three specimens which were collected in 1955 by E. Aubert de la Rüe on the island of makatea in the Tuamotu Archipelago.
The shells reach sizes of less than 0,6 cm in diameter, they are white, depressed and decorated with flammulations, the apex is flat, the spire elevated, the peripheral keel is very short. [1]
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References:
[1] A. F. Sartori; O. Gargominy; B. Fontaine: Radiation and decline of endodontid land snails in Makatea, French Polynesia. Zootaxa 3772(1): 1–68. 2014
The Decorated Newcombia Snail was described in 1912, it is, or rather was, endemic to the island of Moloka’i, Hawaiian Islands.
There is obviously no further information available about this species.
*********************
References:
[1] Mike Severns: A new species of newcombia from the Pleistocene of Kaua’i, Hawaiian Islands, USA (Gastropoda, Pulmonata, Achatinellidae). Basteria 73: 57-60. 2009
This species was described in 1917; it was restricted the southern part of Isla Santa Cruz in the Galapágos Islands and was apparently quite common when it was discovered and described.:
“Indefatigable Island, in the moist area on the south side at 350 to 400 feet, and at all attitudes in the interior; (W. H. O.)
This almost comically small and wrinkled species is one of the most interesting finds of the Academy expedition. It is usually pink tipped, with white corrugations and the indentations more or less darkened by volcanic dust.” [1]
The species was last found alive in 1974 and is thus believed to be possibly extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] William Healey Dall; Washington Henry Ochsner: Landshells of the Galapagos Islands. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences. Ser. 4. Vol. 17.: 141-185. 1928
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Photo from: ‘William Healey Dall; Washington Henry Ochsner: Landshells of the Galapagos Islands. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences. Ser. 4. Vol. 17.: 141-185. 1928’
This species was described in 1986; it is known from subfossil shells that were found amongst a larger collection of shells in the Cueva de Kubler on the island of Santa Cruz in the Galápagos archipelago. [1]
The species was never seen alive and is clearly extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] Steven M. Chambers; David W. Steadman: Holocene terrestrial gastropod faunas from Isla Santa Cruz and Isla Floreana, Galápagos: evidence for late Holocene declines. Transactions of the San Diego Society of Natural History 21(6): 89-110. 1986
Ripken’s Wollastonia Snail was described in 2018 during a genus-group revision; it is known only from subfossil material that was found near the south-eastern shore of Porto Santo, Madeira.
The species died out before the scientific exploration of the island, maybe even before the first humans arrived. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018
*********************
Photo from: ‘Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018’
The Uneven Amastra Snail was described in 1917; it is known from (sub)fossil remains that had been recovered from Late Pleistocene/Early Holocene deposits near Ka’ūpūlehu, in Kona, Hawai’i.
The shells reached average sizes of 1,1 to 1,3 cm in height.
*********************
References:
[1] C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917
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Photo from: ‘C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917’
The Striped Tryonia was described in 1960, apparently originally from fossil speciemens collected from Pleistocene deposits on the right bank of the Pecos River in Chandler County, Texas, USA.
The species was later found in the Diamond Y Draw in Pecos County (originally described as a distinct species, Stockton’s Tryonia (Tryonia stocktonensis Taylor) in 1987, but then synonymized with this species). [1]
It appears to be extinct now, however.
*********************
References:
[1] Robert Hershler: Systematics of the North and Central American aquatic snail genus Tryonia (Rissooidea: Hydrobiidae) Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 612: 1-53. 2001
Matthieu’s Pseudolibera Snail was described in 2014, it is known from at least 118 specimens that were collected on the island of Makatea in the Tuamotu Archipelago.
The shells reach sizes of less than 0,7 cm in diameter, they are white and show regularely spaced, amber-colored flammulations on the apical surface. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] A. F. Sartori; O. Gargominy; B. Fontaine: Radiation and decline of endodontid land snails in Makatea, French Polynesia. Zootaxa 3772(1): 1–68. 2014
Fleming’s Amastra Snail was described in 1917 based on three (sub)fossil shells that were recovered from deposits near the southern coast of eastern Maui, which may date to a Late Pleistocene or Early Holocene age.
The shell of the holotype reaches a height of about 1,3 cm, “The shell is indistinctly rimate, sinitral, oblong-turrite, in its fossil state whitish. The spire is elongate, faintly contracted above, with slightly convex outlines.” [1]
*********************
References:
[1] C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917
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Depiction from: ‘C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917’
The Little Sycamore Pyrg was described in 2016, it had formerly been misidentified as another species, the Yaqui Pyrg (Pyrgulopsis stearnsiana (Pilsbry)).
The species was restricted to a single small, shallow stream that runs for about 1,6 km in the Little Sykcamore Canyon in Ventura Canyon, California, USA.
The shells reach sizes of about 0,28 cm in heigth. [1]
***
The Little Sycamore Pyrg was already rare in 2000, however, when the type locality was revisited in 2015, the stream was completely dry, indicating that the species had lost its only habitat and may thus be now extinct. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Robert Hershler; Hsiu-Ping Liu; Caitlin Babbit; Michael G. Kellog; Jeanette K. Howard: Three new species of western California springsnails previously confused with Pyrgulopsis stearnsiana (Caenogastropoda, Hydrobiidae). ZooKeys 601: 1-19. 2016
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Photo from: ‘Robert Hershler; Hsiu-Ping Liu; Caitlin Babbit; Michael G. Kellog; Jeanette K. Howard: Three new species of western California springsnails previously confused with Pyrgulopsis stearnsiana (Caenogastropoda, Hydrobiidae). ZooKeys 601: 1-19. 2016’
The Translucent Amastra Snail was described in 1895, it was restricted to the Wai’anae Valley on the island of O’ahu, Hawaiian Islands.
The species is named for the thin pellucid (translucent) texture of its shell, and it is one of only a few of which we know at least a little bit about the animal itself.:
“Animal of a uniform brown color; the head above and tentacles of a darker shade. the action of the heart is plainly visible through the thin texture of the shell. When first collected the pulsations were about fifty per minute, growing slower and fainter from day to day until the animal died.” [1]
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a. o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
Alejandro’s Cerion Snail was described in 2019 on the basis of subfossil shells that had been collected from deposits at a place named El Júcaro, near the Ramón de Antillas beach in the Holguín Province of Cuba.
The shells reach sizes of about 2,3 to 2,49 cm in height; they have a rather barrel-shaped form. [1]
The species apparently disappeared at the beginning of the Holocene du to naturally occurring changes in the local climate.
*********************
References:
[1] Alexis Suárez: Descripción de dos especies nuevas de Cerion (Mollusca: Pulmonata: Cerionidae) en estado subfósil, para Holguín, Cuba. Novitates Caribaea 14: 121-127. 2019
The Tricolored Anoma Snail was desribed in 1847, it apperas toe have been restricted to a place named Moncrieff Gully (named Fern Gully today) in the St. Ann Parish at the north coast of Jamaica. [1]
The shells reach sizes of about 1,8 cm in heigth, they have up to 15 whorls and are glossy whitish and bear some grayish stripes.
The species is apparently extinct now.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 16: Urocoptidae, Achatinidae. 1904
[2]
Gary Rosenberg; Igor Muratov: Status Report on the Terrestrial Mollusca of Jamaica. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 155: 117-161. 2006
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Depiction from: ‘Louis Pfeiffer: Die Gattung Cylindrella Pfr.: in Abbildungen nach der Natur. Nürnberg: Verlag von Bauer und Raspe, Julius Merz 1862’
The Pallid Amber Snail was confined to the sister islands of Ra’iatea and Taha’a, where it was historically very abundant and could be found on any moist places on the ground.
The species, which was described in 1847, is now extinct.
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References:
[1] Justin Gerlach: Land and Freshwater Snails of Tahiti and the other Society Islands. Phelsuma Press, Cambridge 2017
Small Thurston’s Amastra Snail (Amastra thurstoni ssp. bembicodes)
This form differs from the nominate form by its smaller size, its compact and closely coiled spire, but especially in its smoother surface marked with finer and more distantly spaced growth-wrinkles. [1]
“This is an exceedingly rare form of Amastra. the results of five findings are six whole and three broken specimens. Among the large number of Amastras that have been taken in the Manoa fossil deposits, from the beginning of Oahu Avenue to Awapuhi Street, this form was only taken from four “pockets”.” [1]
These deposits appear to be actually Late Pleistocene to early Holocene in age.
*********************
References:
[1] C. Montague Cooke: New species of Amastridae. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 10(6): 1-29. 1933
This species was described in 1881; it was restricted to the island of Rarotonga, Cook Islands.
The shells reach sizes of 0,34 to 0,43 cm in diameter.
The species is now extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] Alan Solem: Endodontoid land snails from Pacific Islands (Mollusca: Pulmonata: Sigmurethra). Part II, Families Punctidae and Charopidae, Zoogeography. Field Museum of Natural History Chicago, Illinois 1983
This species was described in 1976; it is, or rather was, restricted to the Ilha da Trindade, a volcanic island in the Atlantic Ocean, about 1150km offshore the east coast of Brazil.
Apparently, the species is known exclusively from empty shells, which differ greatly in their size depending on their collection date, foreshadowing the reasons for their final extinction.:
“Curiously, the shell length of the adult specimens analysed by Breure and Coelho (1976) averaged from 8 to 9 mm (which was an overestimation, our measures of the same specimens average 7 mm), while the ones collected by the MD-55 and later expeditions average 4.8 mm; the shell morphology, though, is the same. It is suspected that this reduction in size reflects inappropriate environmental conditions due to the Island’s much degraded environment.”
The native flora of the island is now largely destroyed due to introduced goats, this again led to the extinction of all native (and non-native, except for two spp.) land snail species! [1][2]
*********************
References:
[1] Rodrigo B. Salvador; Carlo M. Cunha; Luiz Ricardo L. Simone: Taxonomic revision of the orthalicid land snails (Pulmonata: Stylommatophora) from Trindade Island, Brazil. Journal of Natural History 47(13-14): 949-961. 2013
[2] Rodrigo B. Salvador; Nílber G. Silva; Carlo M. Cunha; Luiz Ricardo L. Simone; Ruy J. V. Alves: Rediscovery of living land snails on Trindade Island, Brazil. American Malacological Bulletin 32(1): 140-142. 2014
Many-toothed Saint Helena Snail (Helenoconcha polyodon)
The Many-toothed Saint Helena Snail was described in 1844 based on subfossil shells that were collected from a place named Sugarloaf Quarry on the island of Saint Helena.
The species’ author gives some information about the form of the shells.:
“This is the most widely umbilicated of all the species of Patula from St. Helena, and this feature alone is sufficient to distinguish it from the rest. The whorls also, in adult shells eight to nine in number, enlarge very slowly. The striae are fine, regular, arcuately oblique above, and slightly wavy on the last whorl. There are three parietal lirae extending far within the aperture, of which the upper and lower are nearly always double. The plicae within the outer lip are almost invariably (in adult shells) seven in number, subequidistant, but not of equal thickness, two or three towards the columella being stouter than the rest, which are slender and extend some distance within.” [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Edgar A. Smith: On the land-shells of St. Helena. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 1892: 258-270
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Depiction from: ‘G. W. Tryon; H. A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second Series: Pulmonata Vol. 8, Helicidae Vol. 6. 1892’
This species was described in 1859; it was endemic to the island of Rodrigues in the Mascarenes, however, its taxonomic status is not resolved.:
“Taxonomic issues arose concerning two species when they were submitted to experts, although they had never been reported as nonvalid species in the scientific literature; because their taxonomic status is unclear (the biological species designated by their names are unknown), they were classified as impossible to assess. However, due to this taxonomic uncertainty, no data are available apart from their original 19th-century descriptions, and the model evaluates them as extinct. These taxa are Coilostele acus and Perrottetia piriformis.” [1]
***
The genus should not be confused with the plant genus of the same name.
*********************
References:
[1] Claire Régnier; Guillaume Achaz; Amaury Lambert; Robert H. Cowie; Philippe Bouchet; Benoît Fontaine: Mass extinction in poorly known taxa. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 1-6. 2015
Mark’s Vertigo Snail was described in 1904 based on “fossil” material that was found on the Bermuda Islands.
The shells reach sizes of about 0,2 cm in height.
“This species has never been documented alive, although empty Recent shells are recorded from leaf litter around church Cave ….” [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Rüdiger Bieler; John Slapcinsky: A case study for the development of an island fauna: recent terrestrial mollusks of Bermuda. Nemouria 44: 1-99. 2000
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata, Vol. 25, Pupillidae (Gastrocoptinae, Vertigininae), 1918-1920′
The Southern Yellowish Amastra Snail is a form of the Yellowish Amastra Snail (Amastra flavescens(Newcomb)), from the far south of the island of Hawai’i, it was found on an ancient aa (lava) flow at the foothills of the Mauna Lao volcano in the Ka’u District.
This form differs from the nominate race by its more convex whorls of which the last one is rounded peripherally. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol. 23: Appendix to Amastridae. Tornatellinidae. Index, vols. XXI-XXIII. 1915-1916
The Kula Amastra Snail was described 1873; it inhabited the forests around Kula in the northern part of eastern Maui, Hawaiian Islands, where it usually was found under dead leaves on the ground.
The shells reached sizes of up to 1,7 cm in height; they are ovate-conic, dextral, lightly striated with lines of growth, they are very pale reddish and partly covered with a brownish-olivaceous epidermis. [1]
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References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a. o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a. o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
This tiny snail species was described in 1981, it was originally known from only two specimens that were recovered from the deposits of Elliots Cave as well as ten that were found in the Ngarua Cave in the Takaka Valley.
Some 103 specimens were subsequently recovered from the Hawke’s Cave in the 1990s; these deposits are dated to Otiran age (Late Pleistocene); however, it might have survived until the beginning of the Holocene and is thus mentioned here as well.
The shells reach a size of about 0,3 cm in diameter and are highly furrowed.
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References:
[1] T. H. Worthy; R. N. Holdaway: Quaternary fossil faunas from caves in Takaha Valley and on Takaka Hill, northwest Nelson, South Island, New Zealand. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand 24(3): 297-391. 1994
Black Sea Freshwater Snail (Turricaspia marisnigri)
The Black Sea Freshwater Snail was descried in 1987; it is known only from Holocene deposits; it is known exclusively from subfossil shells that were recovered from Holocene deposits near the coast of the Crimea Peninsula, Ukraine.
The species disappeared for natural reasons. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Frank P. Wesselingh; Thomas A. Neubauer; Vitaliy V. Anistratenko; Maxim V. Vinarski; Tamara Yanina; Jan Johan ter Poorten; Pavel Kijashko; Christian Albrecht; Olga Yu. Anistratenko; Anouk D’Hont; Pavel Frolov; Alberto Martínez Gándara; Arjan Gittenberger; Aleksandre Gogaladze; Mikhail Karpinsky; Matteo Lattuada; Luis Popa; Arthur F. Sands; Sabrina van de Velde; Justine Vandendorpe; Thomas Wilke: Mollusc species from the Pontocaspian region – an expert opinion list. ZooKeys 827: 31-124. 2019
This species was described in 2014, it is known from two populations inhabiting Ojo de Federico and Ojo de San Juan, two closely proximal springs in the lower Río Casas Grandes basin with water temperatures around 23 °C to 27°C.
The two localities dried out sometimes in the 1980s, which means that both populations of this species are lost leading to its extinction. [1]
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References:
[1] Robert Hershler; J. Jerry Landye; Hsiu-Ping Liu; Mauricio De la Maza-Benignos; Pavel Ornelas; Evan W. Carson: New species and records of Chihuahuan Desert springsnails, with a new combination for Tryonia brunei. Western North American Naturalist 74(1): 47-65. 2014
Cooke’s Georissa Snail was described in 1928, it is known only from the island of Kaua’i, Hawaiian Islands.
The shell of this microscopic species reached sizes of only about 0,085 to 0,1 cm, they were composed of three and a half strongly convex whorls and were orange-cinnamon in color. [1]
***
According to a study from 2018 all (two or three) endemic Hawaiian members of the family Hydrocenidae are now extinct. [2]
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References:
[1] Henry A. Pilsbry; C. Montangue Cooke Jr.; Marie C. Neal: Land Snails from Hawaii, Christmas Island, and Samoa. Bishop Museum Bulletin 47: 1-49. 1928 [2] Norine W. Yeung; Kenneth A. Hayes: Biodiversity and extinction of Hawaiian land snails: how many are left now and what must we do to conserve them – a reply to. Integrative and Comparative Biology 58(6): 1157-1169. 2018
The Limahuli Orobophana Snail was described in 1908, it is known only from subfossil remains that had been found near what today is the Limahuli Garden & Preserve, National Tropical Botanical Garden at the northern shore of the osland of Kaua’i, Hawaiian Islands.
The shells were globosly depressed, with a rounded periphery, quite thin, smooth and minutely marked with growth-striae, they reach sizes of about 0,31 cm in heigth and 0,35 cm in diameter. [2]
***
The Limahuli Orobophana Snail was amongst the first snail species that disappeared following the arrival of the first Polynesian settlers and especially the Polynesian Rats (Rattus exulans (Peale)) they brought with them.
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References:
[1] Marie C. Neal: Hawaiian Helicinidae. Bishop Museum Bulletin 125: 1-102. 1934 [2] Norine W. Yeung; Kenneth A. Hayes: Biodiversity and extinction of Hawaiian land snails: how many are left now and what must we do to conserve them – a reply to. Integrative and Comparative Biology 58(6): 1157-1169. 2018
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Photo from: ‘Henry A. Pilsbry; C. Montague Cooke Jr.: Hawaiian species of Helicina. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(2): 199-210. 1908’
Kato’s Hirasea Snail was described in 1973 based on only two specimens that were collected from dune deposits of probably Pleistocene age on the island of Minamijima, Ogasawara Islands, Japan.
The shells reached sizes of 0,3 cm in height, they were very flat, opercular in shape with an extremely depressed spire and a sharply marginated periphery. [1]
***
The species probably disappeared sometimes at the end of the Pleistocene or the beginning of the Holocene.
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References:
[1] Tadashige Habe: Fossil land snails from Minami-jima, Bonin Islands. Science Reports of the Tohoku University, Special Volume 6 (Hatai Memorial Volume): pages 51-53. 1973
Tainted Saint Helena Snail (Pseudohelenoconcha spurca)
The Tainted Saint Helena Snail was described in 1844 on the basis of subfossil, and apparently also quite recent shells that were collected at several localities at higher altitudes on the island of Saint Helena.
***
The species survived at least into the middle of the 19th century, since at least one the forms, (Pseudocampylaea dianae (Pfeiffer)), formerly described as distinct species and now assigned to this one, have been found alive. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Edgar A. Smith: On the land-shells of St. Helena. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 1892: 258-270
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Depiction from: ‘G. W. Tryon; H. A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second Series: Pulmonata Vol. 8, Helicidae Vol. 6. 1892’
The Decorated Laminella Snail was described in 1845; it is, or rather was, endemic to the island of Maui, Hawaiian Islands.
The shells reach sizes of about 1,43 to 1,6 cm in height; they mostly are opaque white and are decorated with small dark dots.
*** This is one of the few Hawaiian snail species of which we know at least a little something about the animal itself.:
“… densely black, surface checkered by fine lines of a light color; tentacles slate, much produced; mantle and bottom of foot brownish-black; when extended same length as the shell.” [1]
***
The species is now considered extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
This species was described in 2014, it is known from subfossil material that was found near the port of Temao on the island of Makatea in the Tuamotu Archipelago.
The shells are less than 0,4 cm in diameter; they are subdepressed, white and do not bear any markings.
*********************
References:
[1] André F. Sartori; Olivier Gargominy; Benoît Fontaine: Radiation and decline of endodontid land snails in Makatea, French Polynesia. Zootaxa 3771(1): 1-68. 2014
This species was described in 1917, it was restricted to the Isla Santa Cruz in the Galápagos archipelago.
The species was last seen in 1974; it could not be found alive during the last recent searches and might thus be extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] William Healey Dall; Washington Henry Ochsner: Landshells of the Galapagos Islands. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences. Ser. 4. Vol. 17.: 141-185. 1928
The Nut-shaped Amastra Snail was described in 1893, it was restricted to lowland areas around the Hanalei Bay at the northern coast of the island of Kaua’i, Hawaiian Islands.
The shells reach sizes of about 1 to 1,1 cm in height and 0,69 cm in diameter.
… from the original description.:
“A small solid species, of a livid hue, whitish at the tip and the neighborhood of the suture, and milk-white just before the termination of the whorl at the aperture (Gld.).” [1]
***
The Nut-shaped Amastra Snail may have gone extinct already in the middle of the 19th century, since all specimens known to exist appear to have been collected dead. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
Perkin’s Newcombia Snail apparently was restricted to the Makakupaia Valley on the island of Moloka’i, Hawaiian Islands, this place is now highly degraded and overgrown by introduced vegetation.
The shells have a size of 2,1 cm in height. [1]
***
Perkin’s Newcombia Snail is now considered extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 22: Achatinellidae. 1912-1914
*********************
Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 22: Achatinellidae. 1912-1914′
Pease’s Sinployea Snail was described in 1983; it is known from the slopes of Mt. Maungaroa and several other mountainous areas on the island of Rarotonga, Cook Islands, it was formerly quite common and widespread.
The shells reached sizes of 0,29 to about 0,4 cm in diameter.
The species is now extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] Alan Solem: Endodontoid land snails from Pacific Islands (Mollusca: Pulmonata: Sigmurethra). Part II, Families Punctidae and Charopidae, Zoogeography. Field Museum of Natural History Chicago, Illinois 1983
This form was described in 1941; it is known from the forested areas of Mt. Tonomwan on Tonowas Island as well as from Mt. Tonnachau on Weno Island, both in the east of the Chuuk lagoon in Micronesia. [1]
The name of this form does appear in listings of extinct mollusks; thus, I will mention it here as well. [2]
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References:
[1] H. Burrington Baker: Zonitid Landsnails from Pacific islands; parts 3 and 4. Bishop Museum Bulletin 166: 201-370. 1941
[2] Claire Régnier; Guillaume Achaz; Amaury Lambert; Robert H. Cowie; Philippe Bouchet; Benoît Fontaine: Mass extinction in poorly known taxa. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 1-6. 2015
The Citrine Laminella Snail was described in 1848, it was restricted to the island of Moloka’i, Hawaiian Islands, where it did inhabit a narrow area on the ridge of the island south of the northern peninsula.
The shells reached sizes of 1,6 to 1,75 cm in height; the usually have a uniformly light yellowish color, sometimes becoming darker on the last whorl, some shells bear various dots on their neanic whorls. [1]
***
This is one of the few Hawaiian snail species of which we know a little bit about the animals themselves.:
“Animal of a uniform light yellow color, superior tentacles and tentacular sheath light slate.” [1]
***
Like most terrestrial Hawaiian snail species, also this one is now extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
This species is known from the Zrmanja river, where it is now extinct; an additional population might still exist in the lower parts of the Neretva River, where it is restricted to freshwater habitats close to the estuary into the Adriatic Sea.
The plan to build a sluice at this site certainly will lead to the destruction of this last population. [1]
***
I have no idea if this species is now already extinct and thus will mention it here only briefly.
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References:
[1] Dr. Jörg Freyhof: Threatened freshwater fishes and molluscs of the Balkan, potential impact of hydropower projects. Unpublished report, ECA Watch Austria & EuroNatur 2012
Vincent Florens’ Tropidophora Snail (Tropidophora vincentflorensi)
Vincent Florens’ Tropidophora Snail was described in 2000; it is known from at least five adult and subadult specimens that were recovered from debris under a basaltic rock overhang in the degraded forest south of the easternmost peak of Trois Mamelles Mountain on the island of Mauritius.
The species is so far only known from the type locality and was never seen alive, it is clearly extinct. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Owen Lee Griffiths: Nine new species of Mascarene land snail (Mollusca: Gastropoda). Molluscan Research 20(2): 37-50. 2000
Thick-shelled Melanopsis Spring Snail (Melanopsis infracincta)
The Thick-shelled Melanopsis Spring Snail was described in 1874; the species is only known from the headwaters of karstic spring complexes of two tributaries of the Euphrates River in north-eastern Syria along the Syrian-Turkish border (near the village of Ain al-Arous as well as near the cities of Ra’s al-‘Ain and Tell Abyad). [1]
The species has not found since the 1940s and is believed to be extinct.
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References:
[1] Joseph Heller; Peter Mordan; Frida Ben-Ami; Naomi Sivan: Conchometrics, systematics and distribution of Melanopsis (Mollusca: Gastropoda) in the Levant.
Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 144: 229-260. 2005
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Depiction from: ‘E. A. Rossmässler, fortgesetzt on Dr. W. Kobelt: Iconographie der Land- und Süsswasser-Mollusken, mit vorzüglicher Berücksichtigung der europäischen noch nicht abgebildeten Artenm. 4. Wiesbaden. C. W. Kreidel’s Verlag 1876′
The Souapitia Snail was described in 1961; it was restricted to a single locality, a stretch of rapids in the Kountouré River in the Republic Guinea.
The habitat, rocks in swiftly running waters, does not exist anymore because China International Water & Electric Corporation, a Chinese construction and engineering consulting company, begun to build a dam, the Souapiti Hydropower Station, in 2015, a project that apparently was finished in 2019.
A survival of this highly rheophilic, i.e. adapted to live in fast-moving water, is rather unlikely, it is now extinct.
***
The species was said to have been found in Nigeria recently, however, this is report is erroneous and is based on a misinterpretation of specimens of another snail species, the African Gabbiella Snail (Gabbiella africana(Frauenfeld)). [1]
*********************
References:
[1] S. O. Oladejo; O. A. Morenikeji: Spatial Distribution of Fresh Water Snails in Erinle Reservoir Dam, Olorunda Local Government Area, Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria. Journal of Agriculture and Forest Meteorology Research 3(1): 246-254. 2020
The Straw-colored Laminella Snail was described in 1850; it was endemic to the island of O’ahu in the Hawaiian Islands, where it is known from several valleys, including the Makiki-, Nu’uanu-, Palolo-, Pauoa, and Waiala’e nui Valleys. The species was almost entirely found on the leaves of the endemic olonā (Touchardia latifolia Gaudich.). [1]
The shells reach sizes of about 2,2 to 2,4 cm in height; they are “acuminately oblong, sinistral, whorls convex, obliquely striated, columella strongly twist-plaited; straw-colored, unspotted.” [1]
We have a little information about the animal itself.:
“Animal of a uniform light flesh color, oral aperture margined with a line of orange.” [1]
***
This species is now considered most likely extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
The Beaverpond Marstonia was described in 1977, it is known exclusively from its type locality, Cedar Creek in the Flint River Drainage, Crisp County, Georgia, USA.
The species was not found during recetn surveys and was finally declared extinct in December 2017. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Georgia Snail Is First Species Declared Extinct Under Trump Administration. www.biologicaldiversity.org. Retrieved 2018-01-07
Walden’s Callina Snail was described in 2018 during a genus revision including many Madeiran land snail forms; it is known only from subfossil shells that were recovered from Holocene deposits near the southern coast of Porto Santo in the Madeiran archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean.
The shells reach sizes of around 1,57 cm in diameter; they are whitish (probably bleached) and have a closed umbilicus and a well-rounded rather than angulated or keeled last whorl.
The species disappeared before the island’s scientific exploration in the 19th century, maybe even due to natural causes like slight, local (non-human induced) climatical changes. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018
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Photo from: ‘Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018’
The Crowned Neohoratia Snail was described in 1870; I could not find out much about it except for a brief account of its former type locality.:
“in Madrid’s surroundings or, at least, in some springs or streams of the New Castille Province” [1]
The species is now considered most likely extinct. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Beatriz Arconada; Maria-Angeles Ramos: Revision of the genus Islamia Radoman, 1973 (Gastropoda, Caenogastropoda, Hydrobiidae), on the Iberian Peninsula and description of two new genera and three new species. Malacologia 48(1-2): 77-132. 2006
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Depiction from: ‘Jules René Bourguignat: Mollusques nouveaux, litigieux, ou peu connus. Fasc. 1. Paris: cneohoratiahez F. Savy 1865’
The Inflated Samoana Snail was described in 1842, it was endemic to the island of Tahuata in the Marquesas.
This arboreal species inhabited the native forests at elevations of about 400 to 500 m above sea level, where it was commonly found on trees. [1]
***
The Inflated Samoana Snail is now considered extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] Justin Gerlach: Icons of Evolution: Pacific Island Tree-Snails of the Family Partulidae. Phelsuma Press 2016
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second Series: Pulmonata Vol. 20, Caecilioides, Clessula and Partulidae. Index to Vols. 16-20. 1909-1910’
The Small Amastra Snail was described in 1895; it inhabited the floors of the forests of Makawao in the northern part of eastern Maui, Hawaiian Islands, where it was once considered common, but very local in its distribution.
The animal was described when it was alive.:
“Animal when extended in motion as long as the shell. Mantle light brown. Foot above and below brown with spots of deeper shade on the sides. Tentacles and front above almost black.” [1]
The shells reach sizes of about 1,1 to 1,2 cm in height; their coloration was quite variable.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a. o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a. o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
This species is known from deposits as old as the Middle Pleistocene, it survived until the Late Holocene, the youngest specimens can be dated to an age of around 50 years, meaning this species disappeared, completely unnoticed, around the 1950s. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Glenn A. Goodfriend; R. A. D. Cameron; L. M. Cook: Fossil evidence of recent human impact on the land snail fauna of Madeira. Journal of Biogeography 21: 309-320. 1994
The Hachijojima Snail was described in 1945; it is, or maybe was, restricted to the island of Hachijojima in the Izu Islands group, Japan.
The species is considered extinct since 2016. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Robert H. Cowie; Claire Régnier; Benoît Fontaine; Philippe Bouchet. Measuring the Sixth Extinction: what do mollusks tell us? The Nautilus 131(1): 3-41. 2017
This species was described in 1849, it was endemic to the island of Java, Indonesia, an exact locality, however, appears to be unknown.
The shells reach sizes of about 2,3 cm in heigth, they are yellowish to olive with brown vertical flames and are sculptured with spiral lirae that are more prominent at the base of the body whorl. [1][2]
*********************
References:
[1] Frank Kühler; Matthias Glaubrecht: Fallen into oblivion – the systematic affinities of the enigmatic Sulcospira Troschel, 1858 (Cerithioidea: Pachychilidae), a genus of viviparous freshwater gastropods from Java. The Nautilus 119: 15-26. 2005 [2] Ristiyanti M. Marwoto; Nur R. Isnaningsih: The freshwater snail genus Sulcospira Troschel, 1857 from Java, with description of a new species from Tasikmalaya, west Java, Indonesia (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Pachychilidae). The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 60(1): 1-10. 2012
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Photo from: ‘Frank Kühler; Matthias Glaubrecht: Fallen into oblivion – the systematic affinities of the enigmatic Sulcospira Troschel, 1858 (Cerithioidea: Pachychilidae), a genus of viviparous freshwater gastropods from Java. The Nautilus 119: 15-26. 2005’
The Glowing Red Amastra Snail was found at a place named Kahuku, probably in the northeastern part of O’ahu, Hawaiian Islands, where it was found on the ground in the forest. [1]
… from the original description.:
“It is allied to Am. elliptica Gk., but differs in being more elongate in form, thicker iin structure, and for the most part destitute of epidermis. It is always dextral.“
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
*********************
Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911′
This species was described in 2014 based on at least 405 subfossil shell specimens that were collected from a cave south of the village of Temao near the eastern coast of Makatea in the Tuamotu Archipelago.
The shells are less than 0,5 cm in diameter; they are depressed, white and do not bear any markings. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] André F. Sartori; Olivier Gargominy; Benoît Fontaine: Radiation and decline of endodontid land snails in Makatea, French Polynesia. Zootaxa 3771(1): 1-68. 2014
The shells reach sizes of about 1,6 cm in height; they are glossy white or ivory yellow with a white sutural line, or either of these tints with a burnt sienna band immediately above a wider and darker band. [1]
***
The species was last found in 1980 in the forest along the Aiea Ridge Trail in the Ko’olau Mountains; it is now most likely extinct. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Recovery Plan for the O’ahu Tree Snails of the genus Achatinella. U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service. Region One, Portland, Oregon. April 1993
*********************
Depiction from: ‘W. Tryon; H. A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata, Vol. 22, Achatinellidae 1912-1914’
The Straight Hirasea Snail was described in 1907; it is, or maybe was, restricted to the island of Hahajima in the Ogasawara Islands, Japan.
The shells reach sizes of about 0,2 cm in height and about 0,3 cm in diameter; the spire is low-conic and the base very convex.
The species is now likely extinct. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Robert H. Cowie; Claire Régnier; Benoît Fontaine; Philippe Bouchet. Measuring the Sixth Extinction: what do mollusks tell us? The Nautilus 131(1): 3-41. 2017
The Boulder Snail was described in 1842; it inhabited the Clinch- and the Powell rivers which are a part of a river system that spans over parts of Georgia, Iowa and Tennessee, USA.
The species is now extinct, the last remaining population of this species disappeared when the Tellico River was dammed in 1979 to create Lake Tellico.
***
The Boulder Snail is sometimes considered rediscovered, however, these accounts must be assigned to a closely related species, Anthony’s Boulder Snail (Athearnia anthonyi (Redfield)).
Forbe’s Amastra Snail was described in 1917; it is known only from (sub)fossil remains found in Late Pleistocene/Early Holocene deposits near the Makua beach at the foot of the Wai’anae Mountains on the island of O’ahu, Hawaiian Islands.
“The material on which this species is based consists of two whole adult specimens and the lower portion of two additional specimens. all the specimens were taken by Mr. Forbes in a single pocket in sand deposits along the railroad track north of Makua. On a later visit by Mr. Forbes and the author, no additional specimens were found though all the exposed surfaces of the sand pockets along the track were carefully gone over. These pockets consist of beach sand covered by talus.” [1]
The shells of this species reach sizes of about 1,3 to 1,4 cm in height.
*********************
References:
[1] C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917
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Photo from: ‘C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917’
The Mo’omomi beach at the northwestern coast of Moloka’i, Hawaiian Islands, is one of the last remaining dune sides found on these islands; thousands of shells poke out of the sandstone cliffs near the beach, some bleached completely, some still bearing hints of their former coloration; these are the shells of land snails that formerly inhabited this now quite desert-like place.
In the Pleistocene, the climate of the Hawaiian Islands was much wetter than it is today and the area that is now covered by sand dunes was forested back then. When the climate became dryer at the beginning of the Holocene about 10000 BP., these forests disappeared, leading to the extinction of the local snail populations.
In fact, the shells can be dated to ages from 42000 to about 3000 years, which means that this form died out during the Holocene, and, that this is a case of a natural extinction.
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 23: Appendix to Amastridae. Tornatellinidae. Index, vols. XXI-XXIII. 1915-1916
The Globule Mercuria Snail was described in 1887, it is or was restricted to the central- and eastern parts of the Tell Atlas of Algeria and Tunisia.
The shells reach sizes of about 0,25 to 0,3 cm in length. [1]
***
I personally do not know now if it is indeed extinct, however, the species apparently has not been seen since the 19th century, was not found during recent surveys, and its name appears in lists of extinct molluscs.
********************
References:
[1] Peter Glöer; Slimane Bouzid; Hans D. Boeters: Revision of the genera Pseudamnicola Paulucci 1878 and Mercuria Boeters 1971 from Algeria with particular emphasis on museum collections. Archiv für Molluskenkunde 139(1): 1-22. 2010
This species was described in 2018, it is known only from the southeastern coast of Porto Santo.
The shells reach a size of about 0,5 to 0,56 cm in diameter.
The species appears to have already been extinct before the scientific exploration of the island in the 19th century. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018
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Photo from: ‘ Willy De Mattia; Marco T. Neiber; Klaus Groh: Revision of the genus-group Hystricella R. T. Lowe, 1855 from Porto Santo (Madeira Archipelago), with descriptions of new recent and fossil taxa (Gastropoda, Helicoidea, Geometridae). ZooKeys 732: 1-125. 2018’
The Ancient Leptaxis Snail is a species that is known exclusively from fossil and subfossil shells that were recovered from Late Pleistocene and Holocene deposits on the island of Santa Maria, Azores.
The species disappeared due to several reasons.:
“Why became extinct this helicid? The explanation for the decline and extinction of this species is surely associated to environmental changes occurred inside its area of habitat, during last centuries. Evidences include (1) the destruction of the original laurel cover of Santa Maria, and the anthropic introduction of new botanic species; (2) a colonization by the introduced and opportunistic Otala lactea (Muller, 1774), one of the commonest and widespread land snails of the island.” [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Pedro Callapez; A. Ferreira Soares; J. Marques: Rediscovery of Leptaxis vetusta (Morelet & Drouet, 1857), a subfossil land snail from the Quaternary of Santa Maria (Azores). Ciências da Terra (UNL) 15: 209-218. 2003
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Depiction from: ‘Arthur Morelet: Iles Açores. Notice sur l’histoire naturelle des Açores suivie d’une description des mollusques terrestres de cet archipel. Paris, Baillière 1860’
Remy’s Laminella Snail was described in 1855; it was endemic to the island of Lana’i in the Hawaiian Islands.
The shells reach sizes of about 1,4 cm in height; they are “… very pale buff, with some pink suffusion on the last whorl and the embryonic whorls. The first half-whorl is smooth, convex and uniform pinkish-brown; next whorl streaked, flattened ad unevenly, rather weakly costate; on part of the third whorl the costation or corrugation is stronger, more or less irregular, after that weakening. The last whorl is very finely striatulate. There are reddish streaks between the ribs on the embryonic whorls; near the end of the third whorl these give place to a few widely-spaced oblique blackish stripes; after which the angular, zigzag or netted pattern begins. This pattern is essentially like that of L. tetrao. The interior of the aperture and the columella are pink; columellar lamella simple, steeply ascending.” [1]
***
The species is now considered extinct.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
This somewhat enigmatic species was described in 2006, apparently based on fossil shells that were collected from deposits that date back well into the Late Pleistocene era while some might well be younger in age.
The species has not yet been discovered alive and it might well be extinct, the question remains if this is a recent or an prehistoric extinction.
*********************
References:
[1] Emilio Fabián Garcia: Conus sauros, a new Conus species (Gastropoda: Conidae) from the Gulf of Mexico. Novapex 7(2-3): 71-76. 2006
Cooke’s Leptachatina Snail was described in 1914, it is known only from subfossil specimens that had been found at a few scattered locations in western O’ahu, Hawaiian Islands. [1]
This was apparently a coastal, respectively lowland species and thus disappeared shortly after the arrival of the first Polynesian settlers.
*********************
References:
[1] Patrick V. Kirch; Carl C. Christensen: Nonemarine molluscs and paleoecology at Barber’s Point, O’ahu. Prepared for Archaeological Research Center Hawaii, Inc.. Department of Anthropology; Bernice P. Bishop Museum 1-40. 1980
This species inhabited the forests of the Mt. Ka’ala and parts of the Wai’anae Mountains on the island of O’ahu, Hawaiian Islands.
… from the species’ description.:
“Shell irregularely, acutely conical, the apex ponted; last whorl inflated; thin, corneous, with minute longitudinal striae; whorls 7, rounded; aperture subovate; lip thin, translucent; columella straight, white, and armed with a transverse plaited tooth. Color uniform dark horn, columella and tooth white.” [1]
The shells reach sizes of 1,1 to 1,75 in heigth and up to 0,85 cm in diameter.
*********************
References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911′
This species was described in 1884; it is, or rather was, endemic to the island of Huahine in the Society archipelago.
The shells reach sizes of about 0,29 to 0,34 cm in diameter; they are light yellowish horn-colored with evenly spaced, wide, slightly zigzag-shaped, reddish flammulations which fade out on the base of the shell. [1]
*********************
References:
[1] Alan Solem: Endodontoid land snails from Pacific Islands (Mollusca: Pulmonata: Sigmurethra). Part I, Family Endodontidae. Field Museum of Natural History Chicago, Illinois 1976
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Depiction from: ‘G. W. Tryon; H. A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second Series: Pulmonata Vol. 3, Helicidae Vol. 1. 1887’
The Silhouette Glabrennea Snail was described in 1994, it restricted to a very small area on Mt. Dauban on the island of Silhouette, Seychelles Islands, when it was discovered in 1990.
The species apparently was an inhabitant of leaf litter.
The Silhouette Glabrennea Snail was only ever found at its type locality, once in 1990, and a for second time one year later in 1991, when its population was already declining. All subsequent searches (2000, 2009, 2010) at the type locality and other suitable areas failed to find the species again which thus is considered extinct. [1]
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References:
[1] Justin Gerlach: Red List ing reveals the true state of biodiversity: a comprehensive assessment of Seychelles biodiversity. Phesluma 20: 9-22. 2012 [2] Justin Gerlach: Changes in non-marine mollusc populations in the Seychelles islands 1986-2012. Phelsuma 20: 23-38-2012
Ancey’s Taipidon Snail was endemic to the island of Hiva Oa, Marquesas, it was described in 1887 when the species apparently was still alive, the author gives some slight information about it.:
“Sa grande taille, son large ombilic, ses grandes lamelles aperturales blanches et bien visibles, empêcheront de confondre cette Espèce avec ses congénerès.“
translation:
“Its large size, its large umbilicus, and its large, white apertural lamellae, well visible, will prevent this species from being confused with its congeners.“
***
Ancey’s Taipidon Snail was apparently a lowland species and might already have been extinct at the time of its discovery.
As far as I know, only three specimens of the species remain today with the holotype reaching a heigth of 0,23 cm and 0,5 cm in diameter, it is furthermore light yellow-brown and decorated with irregular, reddish flammulations.
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References:
[1] Andrew Garrett: Mollusques terrestres des Iles Marquises (Polynésie). Bulletins de la Société malacologique de France 4: 1-48. 1887 [2] Alan Solem: Endodontoid land snails from Pacific Islands (Mollusca: Pulmonata: Sigmurethra). Part I, Family Endodontidae. Field Museum of Natural History Chicago, Illinois 1976
This species was described in 1908, it was endemic to the Kohala Volcano in the northern part of Hawai’i, Hawaiian Islands.
The shells were very distinct, they were covered with transverse striae that were strongly developed, with cuticular margins which could very easily be broken, they reached sizes of about 0,26 cm in length.
***
According to a study from 2018, sadly all Hawaiian species of the genus Lyropupa are now extinct. [2]
*********************
References:
[1] C. Montague Cooke Jr.: A new species of Lyropupa. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(2): 211-212. 1908 [2] Norine W. Yeung; Kenneth A. Hayes: Biodiversity and extinction of Hawaiian land snails: how many are left now and what must we do to conserve them – a reply to. Integrative and Comparative Biology 58(6): 1157-1169. 2018
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Depiction from: ‘C. Montague Cooke Jr.: A new species of Lyropupa. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(2): 211-212. 1908’
The Small-ribboned Oahu Tree Snail was described in 1846; like all members of its genus, it was endemic to the island of O’ahu in the Hawaiian Islands.
The shells reach sizes of about 1,8 to 2 cm in height; they are dextral, ovate-oblong, spiro-conic, solid, striatulate, more obsolete toward the apex and with slightly convex whorls; glossy white, ornamented with varying brown bands; the white columella is strongly toothed above and the margin is dilated, reflexed and appressed; the white aperture is irregularly semioval; the peristome is narrowly thickened outside and strongly lipped within. [1]
***
The Small-ribboned Oahu Tree Snail was last seen in 1966 at the Hawai’iloa- and the Kuliouou Ridges in the Ko’olau Mountains; it is now most like exinct. [1]
***
According to some authors, this species is actually a subspecies of the Green Oahu Tree Snail (Achatinella viridans Mighels), as there seems to be a complete integration between them. [1]
************************
References:
[1] Recovery Plan for the O’ahu Tree Snails of the genus Achatinella. U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service. Region One, Portland, Oregon. April 1993
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Depiction from: ‘W. Tryon; H. A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata, Vol. 22, Achatinellidae 1912-1914’
This very interesting species was described in 1968 based on about 30 specimens that were collected on Clipperton Island in the Pacific Ocean apparently 10 years earlier, when the species appeared to be very abundant on the atoll.
The rather unusal shell (for a member of that genus) reaches a length of about 1,1 cm, it is elongately ovate, thin, andr tanslucent, the upper whorls are light amber-colored, the last whorl is grayish-yellow with iregularely spaced brown lines which parallel the growth lines. [1]
***
The Atoll Amber Snail was not found alive since 1958 and it is obviously extinct. [2]
*********************
References:
[1] L. G. Hertlein; E. C. Allison: Descriptions of new species of gastropods from Clipperton Island. Occasional Papers of the California Academy of Science 66: 1-33. 1968
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Photo from: ‘Kirstie L. Kaiser: The recent molluscan fauna of Île Clipperton (Tropical Eastern Pacific). The Festivus 39. 2007’
This species was described in 1917; it was found at a place named Waiahole at the crest of the Ko’olau Mountains along the eastern coast of O’ahu, Hawaiian Islands.
The shells of this species reach sizes of about 1 to 1,2 cm in height.
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References:
[1] C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917
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Photo from: ‘C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917’
This species was described in 1985, its species epithet, however, is now considered a nomen nudum, the reasons therefore are not known to me.
Kramer’s Galapagos Snail appears to have been quite common when it was discovered and described, it was found in all wetlands and in the Scalesia forests north of Cerro Puntudo on the island of Santa Cruz, Galápagos Islands. [1]
The species seems to have not been found alive during the most recent field searches and might be extinct.
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References:
[1] Guy Coppois: Etude de la spéciation chez les Bulimulidae endémiques de l’archipel des Galápagos (Mollusques, Gastéropodes, Pulmonés). Thèse de Doctorat, Libre de Bruxelles 1-283. 1985
The Oromana Tubuaia Snail was described in 1962; it was only ever known from its type locality, the Oromana Hills on the island of Rimatara in the Austral archipelago, a place that today is completely degraded and transformed into agricultural fields (like actually most of the island).
This snail is now clearly extinct. [1]
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References:
[1] Olivier Gargominy; Benoît Fontaine: A Global Overview of the Terrestrial and Freshwater Molluscs. In: Jean-Yves Meyer; Elin. M. Claridge: Biodiversity of the Austral Islands, French Polynesia. Muséum national d´Histoire naturelle, Paris. 55-91. 2014
St. John’s Mautodontha Snail (Mautodontha saintjohni)
This species was described in 1976; it was endemic to the island of Bora Bora in the Society archipelago.
The shells reach about 0,26 to 0,3 cm in diameter; they are white and bear prominent zigzag-shaped, reddish flammulations.
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References:
[1] Alan Solem: Endodontoid land snails from Pacific Islands (Mollusca: Pulmonata: Sigmurethra). Part I, Family Endodontidae. Field Museum of Natural History Chicago, Illinois 1976
The Aged Amastra Snail is one of many forms of its genus that are actually known only based on (sub)fossil material; this one was found in deposits of the Hanama’ulu plains near the eastern coast of Kaua’i, Hawaiian Islands.
“This extremely variable form is abundant in road cuttings on the coastal plain south of the Wailua river. There are several distinct forms found associated in the different deposits. The typical form described above might be considered a distinct species if it did not occur with numerous intergrades of other forms which closely approach A. rugulosa normalis. A constant differentiating character between all these specimens of annosa and normalis is the very weak, oblique, deeply situated columellar fold of the former. Some of the specimens of annosa at first glance seem to belong to the subgenus Cyclamastra but the embryonic whorls are less convex than those of any species of this subgenus.” [1]
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References:
[1] C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917
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Photo from: ‘C. Montague Cooke: Some new species of Amastra. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(3): 1-34. 1917’
The Channeled Newcombia Snail was described in 1905, it was restricted to the easternmost part of Moloka’i, Hawaiian Islands.
The author gave some information about the live animal.:
“Animal when extended in motion as long as the shell. Mantle slate color, margined with brown. Foot light slate, studded on the sides and head above with spots of deeper shade. Tentacles short and slender, dark slate.” [1]
***
The species is now considered extinct.
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References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 22: Achatinellidae. 1912-1914
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 22: Achatinellidae. 1912-1914′
The Keeled Lantzia Snail was described in 1872; it is (or probably was) restricted to a single locality on the island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean.
The species inhabited wet moss that grew along a waterfall in the interior of the island at an elevation of 1200 to 1300 m above sea level.
The Keeled Lantzia Snail was thought to have gone extinct sometimes during the early 19th century but was rediscovered in 199; however, it seems to have disappeared again and is now most likely indeed extinct.
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Depiction from: ‘F. P. Jousseaume: Description de quatre mollusques nouveaux. Revue et magasin de zoologie pure et appliquée, series 2(23): 5-15. 1872’
The Achatinella-like Galapagos Snail was described in 1850.
“There is no doubt that N. achatellinus is one of the rarer Galápagos land snails. It is of special interest because of its superficial resemblance to certain species of Hawaiian tree snails of the genus Achatinella. Also, its straight-sided, conical shape, its non-impressed, nodulose sutures, and its relatively bright color pattern set it apart from any other known species of Naesiotus from the Galápagos Islands or from the South American mainland.” [2]
The species was found first on Island San Cristóbal in the early 1830s and in 1846; in 1868, it was apparently also found on Isla Española.
The shells reach sizes of about 1,2 to 1,6 cm in height, they are: “perforated, ovate-pyramidal with long, conic spire, rather thin; variously colored, being banded with chestnut on an olivaceous or whitish ground, or chestnut below, white above, always with a white line below the suture; surface smooth and glossy, like an Achatinella with slight growth-wrinkles and an impressed band below the suture, pinched up into tubercles at irregular intervals.” [1]
***
The Achatinella-like Galapagos Snail disappeared from Isla Española at an unknown date and was last seen on Isla San Cristóbal in the 1980s; it is now most likely extinct.
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References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 11: American Bulimulidae: Bulimulus, Neopetraeus, Oxychona, and South American Drymaeus. 1897-1898 [2] Allyn G. Smith: New record for a rare Galápagos land snail. Nautilus 85(1): 5-8. 1971
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 11: American Bulimulidae: Bulimulus, Neopetraeus, Oxychona, and South American Drymaeus. 1897-1898’
The shells reach sizes of about 1,75 cm in length; they are subperforate, subfusiform, slender, smooth, glossy coffee-colored and bear a white band at their suture. [1]
The species was not found during recent searches and might well be extinct. [2]
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References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 16: Urocoptidae, Achatinidae. 1904 [2] Gary Rosenberg; Igor Muratov: Status Report on the Terrestrial Mollusca of Jamaica. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 155: 117-161. 2006
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 16: Urocoptidae, Achatinidae. 1904’
This snail is known from a single specimen that was collected in 1991 during excavations at Anakena at the north coast of Rapa Nui. [1]
The Rapa Nui taxon was certainly an endemic species that is now extinct.
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References:
[1] Patrick V. Kirch; Carl C. Christensen; David W. Steadman: Subfossil Land Snails from Easter Island, Including Hotumatua anakenana, New Genus and Species (Pulmonata: Achatinellidae). Pacific Science, 63: 105–122. 2009
The Julimes Tryonia was discovered in 1991 and subsequently described in 2011.
The species was endemic to its type locality, a warm spring complex along the east side of the Río Conchos, where it formerly was very abundantly found in water with a temperature of about 44°C on hard substrate and in detritus which it apparently also fed upon.
The shells eached sizes of about 0,2 cm.
The only known habitat of the Julimes Tryonia was found excavated and draglined in 2001, no individual could be detected and the species is presumed extinct. [1]
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References:
[1] Robert Hershler; Hsiu-Ping Liu; J. Jerry Landeye: New species and records of springsnails (Caenogastropoda: Cochliopidae: Tryonia) from the Chihuahuan Desert (Mexico and United States), an imperiled biodiversity hotspot. Zootaxa 3001: 1-32. 2011
The Concealed Helicostyla Snail was described in 1841.:
“Imperforate, ovate-oblong, solid; yellowish, ornamented with two bands and a basal area of chestnut, veiled with a whitish hydrophanous cuticle. Spire conic, apex obtuse. Whorls 6, scarcely convex, the last about equal to three-sevenths the entire length. Columella nearly straight, slightly dilated, rose-white; aperture oval, milk-white within; peristome somewhat thickened, narrowly reflexed, brown-edged.” [1]
This species is apparently restricted to the Camotes Islands east of Cebu Island, Philippines; it is possibly extinct now.
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References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a. o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 8: Helicidae – Volume VI. 1892
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a. o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 8: Helicidae – Volume VI. 1892’
The Kaipaupau Amastra Snail was described in 1911, as far as I understand, it is known from a single specimen that was collected at a place named Kaipaupau, which may actually be the area around the Kaipapa’u Waterfall near the northeastern coast of O’ahu, Hawaiian Islands.
***
… from the description.:
“The shell is short, subperforate, thin, with straightly conic spire and convex whorls, the last quite rotund; dull purplish-brown, the thin cuticle yellowish on theearly whorls. Embryo finely striate; later whorls with fine, irregular sculpture of growth-wrinkles. Aperture purplish within, the lip very narrowly thickened. Columnellar lamella thin, its lower edge subhorizontal. …. Near The above, yet with narrower, straightly conic spire and more convex whorls. ….” [1]
The shell has a length of 1,1 cm and reaches 0,7 cm in diameter.
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References:
[1] George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911
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Depiction from: ‘ George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 21: Achatinellidae (Amastrinae). 1911’
This species was described in 1942, it apparently was restricted to the Congo River, where it inhabited crevices among rocks in swiftly flowing water near the town of Matadi in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The shells reach sizes of about 1,2 cm in height.
***
The species is considered extinct, however, I didn’t find any additional information about thus assumption.
The Lake Prespa Mudsnail was described in 1973, it was apparently endemic to Lake Prespa, an quite ancient lake that is located between Albania, Greece, and Macedonia.
There are no recent records of this species and it is believed to be possibly extinct.
***
Another species of that genus, which was also presumed extinct, was rediscovered in 2013. [1]
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References:
[1] Magdalena Szarowska; Sebastian Hofman; Andrzej Falinokski: Vinodolia fiumana Radoman, 1973 (Caenogastropoda: Rissoidea): rediscovery and relationships of a species presumed extinct. Folia Malacologica 21(3): 135-142. 2013
The Radiate Anoma Snail was described in 1853, originally as a subspecies of another species, Mauger’s Anoma Snail (Anoma maugeri Wood); it occurred near Bog Walk, a small town in the Saint Catherine Parish in southeast Jamaica.
The species was well distinguishable from related species by its fusiform shape, the finely plicate surface, the strong basal angle, the absense of bands or streaks, and the small, oblique, angular aperture. [1]
The Radiate Anoma Snail is now likely extinct.
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References:
[1] Gary Rosenberg; Igor Muratov: Status Report on the Terrestrial Mollusca of Jamaica. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 155: 117-161. 2006
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Depiction from: ‘George W. Tryon; Henry A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata. Vol 16: Urocoptidae, Achatinidae. 1904’
The Giant Paua Snail is known only from subfossil shells that had been found in the Waikato region in the northern part of the North Island of New Zealand.
The shells could grow to a size of about 5 cm, that means the snails body might have reached lengths of about 15 cm.
The species very likely was among the first that were extirpated by the rats that had been imported by the first Polynesian settlers in the 13th century.
The Temao Mautodontha Snail was described in 2014, it is known only from subfossil material that was found near the port of Temao on the island of Makatea in the Tuamotu Archipelago.
The shells are less than 0,3 cm in diameter; they are depressed, white and bear no markings at all. [1]
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References:
[1] André F. Sartori; Olivier Gargominy; Benoît Fontaine: Radiation and decline of endodontid land snails in Makatea, French Polynesia. Zootaxa 3771(1): 1-68. 2014
The shells reach sizes of about 1,9 cm in height; they are glossy yellow, green, olive or chestnut, often banded with green or chestnut; the extremely color patterns were already mentioned by the species’ author.:
“The colouring of this species is extremely variable; there is, however, but one prevailing idea in its manner of distribution. The columella is of a livid purple-rose in all the varieties.” [1]
“This is one of the most common shells met with on Oahu, and passes through numerous slight variations, which have led to their description as distinct species.” [1]
***
The species was last found in 1965 along the slopes of the Pu’u ‘ohi’a (Mt. Tantalus); it is now considered extinct. [2]
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References:
[1] E. W. Thwing: Reprint of the original descriptions of the genus Achatinella. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 3(1): 1-196. 1907 [2] Recovery Plan for the O’ahu Tree Snails of the genus Achatinella. U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service. Region One, Portland, Oregon. April 1993
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Depiction from: ‘W. Tryon; H. A. Pilsbry; a.o.: Manual of Conchology. Second series: Pulmonata, Vol. 22, Achatinellidae 1912-1914′
Pilsbry’s Samoana Snail was described in 2016, it is known from several specimens that were collected in 1923 on the island of Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas.
The species lived an arboreal life and was usually found on the leaves of puarata (Metrosideros collina (J. R. Forst. & G. Forst.) A. Gray).
The shells are: “Light brown with some streaking, sometimes a faint narrow brown peripheral band, usually with a white subsutural band caused by decortications. A few bicolorous: light brown with wide supraperipheral white band but this is due to decortication, not pigmentation. A very uniform species.” [1]
We also have some information about the appearance of the animals themselves.:
“Mantle in juveniles is blackish with white maculae, becoming white with black threads and finally fully white in adults ….” [1]
***
Pilsbry’s Samoana Snail is now considered extinct.
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References:
[1] Justin Gerlach: Icons of Evolution: Pacific Island Tree-Snails of the Family Partulidae. Phelsuma Press 2016
Linear Truncatellina Snail (Truncatellina linearis)
This species was endemic to the island of Madeira, where it is known already from Middle Pleistocene deposits, it survived until the 1950s. [1]
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References:
[1] Glenn A. Goodfriend; R. A. D. Cameron; L. M. Cook: Fossil evidence of recent human impact on the land snail fauna of Madeira. Journal of Biogeography 21: 309-320. 1994
Yellow-tipped Oahu Tree Snail (Achatinella apexfulva)
The tree snails of the genus Achatinella are only found on the island of O’ahu in the Hawaiian archipelago; 41 species are currently accepted, of which about 20 may still survive.
All species inhabit trees and shrubs where they feed on fungi by scraping them from the surfaces of leaves or trunks; the snails are hermaphroditic and give birth to live young, however, only to a few each year. The snails can live to about ten years or even more, the growth rate is very low, and they reach maturity only with about six years.
The tree snails are very vulnerable to loss of individuals through over-collecting, but also to habitat destruction and especially to the introduction of predators like rats, or more recently the snail-eating Rosy Wolfsnail (Euglandina rosea (Férussac)). [1]
***
The Yellow-tipped Oahu Tree Snail was indeed the first member of its genus to reach Europe – as part of a shell lei, given by native Hawaiians to George Dixon, a British ship captain in 1786, and to be scientifically described – in 1789.
The species was restricted to some of the ridges of the Ko’olau Mountains, where it was last found in 1985. [1]
The shells reach sizes of about 1,9 cm in height; they are dextral or sinistral and are quite variably colored; the embryonic whorl might be yellow, the following whorls are blackish brown to chestnut-colored, sometimes with some whitish streaks and spiral lines; the narrow suture is light-edged; the moderately thickened lip is flesh- to salmon-colored while the columellar fold is nearly white; the aperture is bluish white within. [1]
***
The species was last seen in the wild at the Poamoho Trail and was considered extinct in the wild since then; a little captive population (brought into captivity in 1997) was all that was left of this species. This population, however, did not breed and finally was down to a last surviving individual.
This individual, named George (see photo below), died today (1. January 2019) at the age of 14 years, an exceptional age for an invertebrate species. [2]
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References:
[1] Recovery Plan for the O’ahu Tree Snails of the genus Achatinella. U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service. Region One, Portland, Oregon. April 1993 [2] Jacina Bowler: Lonely George – A Hawaiian Tree Snail – Has Died, Taking His Species With Him. Science Alert January 9, 2019
This species was described in 1939; it was found near the city of Ra’s al-‘Ain in a series of karst springs in northern Syria that form the main spring of the Khabour River, which again is a tributary of the Euphrates River. [1]
The water situation in the region is dramatic and the type locality has fallen dry; in fact, the snail species was never found again since its description and is quite certainly extinct.
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References:
[1] Joseph Heller; Peter Mordan; Frida Ben-Ami; Naomi Sivan: Conchometrics, systematics and distribution of Melanopsis (Mollusca: Gastropoda) in the Levant. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 144: 229-260. 2005
