Tag Archives: Opisthostoma

Opisthostoma decrespignyi H. Adams

De Crespigny’s Karst Snail (Opisthostoma decrespignyi)  

This minute species, whose shell hardly reaches 0,2 cm, was described in the year 1865.  

De Crespigny’s Karst Snail inhabited small islets like Pulau Burung, Pulau Daat, and Pulau Papan offshore the island state of Labuan, which again lies offshore Borneo’s northwest coast, where it was strictly restricted to limestone rocks.  

The limestone (of all these islands ?) was removed in the 1960s by quarrying, and thus the habitat of this snail species was destroyed. [1]  

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De Crespigny’s Karst Snail is now considered possibly extinct – however, there have been no recent surveys to confirm this assumption.  

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References:  
[1] Reuben Clements; Navjot S. Sodhi; Menno Schilthuizen; Peter K. L. Ng: Limestone Karsts of Southeast Asia: Imperiled Arks of Biodiversity. BioScience 56(9): 733-742. 2006 

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Depiction from: ‘Henry Adams: Descriptions of Six New Species of Shells, and Note on Opisthostoma de-Crespignii. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 445-451. 1866’

(public domain)

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edited: 04.11.2020

Opisthostoma otostoma Boettger

Brunei Karst Snail (Opisthostoma otostoma)  

This species was described in 1893, it occurred in a single locality on limestone outcrops in lowland tropical Dipterocarp rainforest on limestone.  

The shell reached an average size of about 0,25 cm in diameter.  

The only place where this snail existed is now an airport, the habitat of the snail does not exist anymore.  

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References:  

[1] Reuben Clements; Navjot S. Sodhi; Menno Schilthuizen; Peter K. L. Ng: Limestone Karsts of Southeast Asia: Imperiled Arks of Biodiversity. BioScience 56(9): 733-742. 2006  

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Depiction from: ‘E. A. Smith: On a Collection of Land-Shells from Sarawak, British North Borneo, Palawan, and other neighbouring Islands. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 79-127. 1895’ 

(public domain)

Depiction from: ‘E. A. Smith: On a Collection of Land-Shells from Sarawak, British North Borneo, Palawan, and other neighbouring Islands. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 79-127. 1895’  

(public domain)

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edited: 04.11.2020