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Friday, 14 August 2015

Carychium minimum (Müller, 1774) - Cyprus

Carychium minimum is a species of very small air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Ellobiidae.

Description
The width of the shell is 0.9-1.1 mm. The height of the shell is 1.6-2.2 mm. It is wider than the shell of Carychium tridentatum which it closely resembles. As in C. tridentatum shell is dull white and cylindrical and the mouth is oval with two denticles and a thickened lip. However if the last whorl above the aperture is opened this shows the plica parietalis (a spiral ridge on the parietal region projecting into the interior of the shell) descending in a simple way downwards

Distribution
The distribution of Carychium minimum is Euro-Asiatic.

Northern Europe: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden.
Western Europe: Belgium, France and Corsica, Great Britain and Channel Islands, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Switzerland.
Central Europe: Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia.
Southern Europe: Greece including North Aegean Islands, Italy.
Southeastern Europe: Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia.
Southwestern Europe: Andorra, Portugal including Azores and Madeira, Spain.
Eastern Europe: Belarus, Crimea, Estonia, Kaliningrad, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Ukraine, European Russia.
Southwestern Asia: Turkey,citation needed Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia
Western Siberia
Central Asia: northern, central, and eastern Kazakhstan
North America - introduced: Canada (British Columbia, Ontario, New Brunswick); USA (California, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania). From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carychium_minimum


Photos by George Konstantinou


Gyraulus piscinarum (Bourguignat, 1852) - Cyprus

Gyraulus piscinarum is a species of gastropods belonging to the family Planorbidae.

The species is found in Southeastern Europe (Bulgaria, Turkey) and Western Asia (Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Iran). However, the specific range is uncertain because of uncertainty in assigning specific populations to this species

Gyraulus is a genus of small, mostly air-breathing, freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Planorbidae, the ram's horn snails.

The genus Gyraulus is known from the Early Cretaceous to the present. Fossils attributed to Gyraulus sp. have been found in the lakebottom sediments of the Yixian Formation in China, dating to 125 million years ago.

The minute species Gyraulus crista, although technically a pulmonate gastropod, does not use air for respiration, but instead has a mantle cavity which has much water. These snail snails live on water plants in freshwater. Shell of the species within this genus are small, and are mostly almost planispiral in their coiling. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Photos by George Konstantinou

Polygyra cereolus (Mühlfeld, 1818) - Cyprus

Polygyra cereolus is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Polygyridae.

(alien invader)
     Photos by George Konstantinou


Unknown - Livera - Cyprus

See also

List of non-marine molluscs of Cyprus - Freshwater snails and Land snails of Cyprus

Άγνωστο είδος που το βρήκα το 2010 σε παραλιακή περιοχή στο κατεχόμενο χωρίο Λιβερά

Photos by George Konstantinou

Carpathica cretica (Forcart 1950)- Cyprus

Carpathica is a genus of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Oxychilidae.

Distribution
Distribution of Carpathica include south-eastern Europe and Turkey.

Description
Animal cannot withdraw into the shell. The shell is with 0.5-2 whorls. The last whorl is much inflated.

Reproductive system: Penis is more or less long, usually cylindrical, with appendix (flagellum) at its terminal end. Vas deferens is inserting laterally (subterminally). Retractor connects at appendix. Vagina is usually shorter, surrounded by a vaginal gland in its posterior part. Spermatheca duct is usually short and usually inserting in the zone covered by the vaginal gland. The spermatheca is spherical or ovoid. Oviduct is usually short and sometimes thinner than penis and vagina Atrium is short.

Carpathica differs from Daudebardia in the presence of an appendix or flagellum at the apical end of the penis; vas deferens inserts subterminally (in Daudebardia terminally).

If Daudebardia transsylvanica is conspecific with Carpathica langi, which is likely if results by Alexandru Vasile Grossu (1983) are tenable (they suggest an uninterrupted gradient between both forms), then there are no differences between Daudebardia and Carpathica, neither in shell not in the anatomy, and the species classified in Carpathica should be placed in Daudebardia. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


   Photos by George Konstantinou


Daudebardia rufa (Draparnaud 1805) - Cyprus

Daudebardia rufa is a species of air-breathing land snail or semi-slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Oxychilidae, which belongs to the limacoid clade.

Daudebardia rufa is the type species of the genus Daudebardia. This species is a predatory carnivore.

Description
The length of the body 16–20 mm. The color of the skin is blue-grey.

The shell is perforate, depressed, transversely dilated, slightly striate, very shining, and corneous or rufous in colour. The spire is moderate and sublateral. The shell has three whorls. The last whorl in adults is elongated and is not angulated. The aperture is large and has a rounded oval shape. The length of the shell is 5.5 mm.

Distribution
The distribution of this species is in central and southern Europe including Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Ukraine. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 Photos by George Konstantinou


Pyramidula rupestris (Draparnaud 1801)- Cyprus

Pyramidula rupestris is a species of very small, air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks or micromollusks in the family Pyramidulidae. 

The variety Pyramidula rupestris var. nylanderi Morse, 1920is a synonym of Planogyra asteriscus (Morse, 1857)

Shell description
The width of the shell is up to 2.7 mm, the height is up to 2.5 mm. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramidula_rupestris

   Photos by George Konstantinou


Truncatellina rothi (Reinhardt 1916) - Cyprus

Truncatellina is a genus of very small air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Truncatellinidae

Photos by George Konstantinou



Thursday, 13 August 2015

Cochlicopa lubrica (O. F. Muller 1774) - Cyprus

Cochlicopa lubrica is a species of small air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Cochlicopidae.

Description
The 5–7.5 x 2.4–2.9 mm shell has 4–5 moderately convex whorls. The aperture inside is slightly thickened. There are no apertural teeth and there is no umbilicus. Shell colour is horny yellowish to reddish brown. The animal is greyish or blackish, with dark tentacles .

This species can be hard to differentiate from the similar species Cochlicopa lubricella.From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Photos by George Konstantinou


Orculella ignorata (Hausdorf, 1996) - Cyprus

Orculella ignorata is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the family Orculidae.

Geographic distribution
The native distribution of O. ignorata includes the northern part of the mainland, the island of Thasos and the eastern Aegean Islands in Greece, Cyprus the south-western part of Bulgaria and the south and western coasts of Anatolia in Turkey.From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Photos by George Konstantinou

Orculella sirianocoriensis (Mousson, 1854) - Cyprus

Orculella is a genus of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Orculidae. The genus Orculella occurs in the whole Mediterranean region. The richest areas in terms of species are Turkey and the Middle East, the Aegean Islands (mainly Crete)[3] and Libya (Cyrenaica).A few species inhabit Southern Spain (O. bulgarica[6]), Sicily (O. templorum) and northeastern Africa (O. tingitana

Species in the genera Schileykula and Orculella are indistinguishable based on shell characters only. They differ however in the genitalia, primarily in the presence (Orculella) or absence (Schileykula) of a penial appendix. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Photos by George Konstantino

Granopupa granum (Draparnaud 1801) - Cyprus

Granopupa granum is a species of air-breathing land snails in the family Chondrinidae.

The species is found in Western Europe and Mediterranean

Photos by George Konstantinou


Rupestrella rhodia (Roth 1836) - Cyprus

Rupestrella is a genus of gastropods belonging to the family Chondrinidae.

The species of this genus are found in Mediterranean.

Photos by George Konstantinou



Pleurodiscus cyprius (Kobelt 1896) - Cyprus

Pleurodiscus is a genus of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Pupilloidea.

Pleurodiscus is the only genus in the family Pleurodiscidae

Photos by George Konstantinou

Chrysalis snail - Lauria cylindracea (Da Costa 1778) - Cyprus

Lauria cylindracea, common name "the common chrysalis snail", is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Lauriidae.

Description
For terms see gastropod shell

The 3-4 x 1.8 mm shell is oval with a blunt apex and 5-6 weakly convex whorls. The last whorl has the largest diameter. The aperture with parietalis and with or without angular tooth. The margin is white, sharp and reflected in fully grown specimens, usually with a whitish parietal callus. The umbilicus is open and narrow. The shell colour is brown, transparent and shiny. It is weakly striated. Juveniles have additional folds visible from outside the shell. The animal is dark with lighter sides and foot. The upper tentacles are short, the lower tentacles very short. The animal crawls with the shell in a high and almost straight position.From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Photos by George Konstantinou

Dot snails - Paralaoma servilis (Shuttleworth 1852) - Cyprus

Paralaoma servilis is a species of very small air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk or micromollusk in the family Punctidae, the dot snails. 

Distribution
The native range for this species is thought to be New Zealand. However, the species is known to occur worldwide in numerous countries and islands outside of its native range, including:From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Photos by George Konstantinou

Dot snails - Punctum pygmaeum (Draparnaud 1801) - Cyprus

Punctum pygmaeum is a species of very small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Punctidae, the dot snails.

Shell description
For terms see gastropod shell. The shell is very small, 1.2-1.6 mm in width.

The 0.6-0.8 x 1.2-1.6 mm shell is almost flat, extremely densely and regularly striated, appearing silky shiny light horny brown. There are 3-3.5 moderately convex whorls, the aperture is rounded, with a thin margin which is not reflected and without a lip. The umbilicus is wide (25% of shell diameter).

Habitat
These gastropods are commonly found in damp, dim, and undisturbed areas[4] including the margins or wetlands, wet woodland, and leaf-littered forests.  They may also live in mossy suburban gardens. They commonly lay their eggs underneath damp soil or rocks

Photos by George Konstantinou




Hohenwarti hohenwartiana (Rossmassler 1839) - Cyprus

Hohenwartiana is a genus of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Ferussaciidae

Photos by George Konstantinou




Blind snail - Cecilioides acicula (O. F. Muller 1774) - Cyprus

Cecilioides acicula, common name the "blind snail" or "blind awlsnail", is a species of very small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Ferussaciidae.

This is a subterranean species.

Description
This animal is white, there are two pairs of tentacles, but eyes are lacking.

The shell is long and narrow, up to a maximum of 5.5 mm and a width of 1.2 mm. The shell is colorless, glassy and transparent when it is fresh, a somewhat opaque milky-white when it is not fresh.

Habitat
The habitat of this species is underground, quite some distance below the surface. It is more common in soils with a high level of calcium.

Because of its subterranean habitat, this species is often found only as an empty shell, in such places as mole hills, ant hills, or in flood debris of rivers.From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Photos by George Konstantinou




Calaxis hierosolymarum (Roth 1855) - Cyprus

Calaxis is a genus of gastropods belonging to the family Ferussaciidae.

The species of this genus are found in eastern Mediterranean

Photos by George Konstantinou



Cecilioides tumulorum (Bourguignat 1856) - Cyprus

Cecilioides is a genus of very small, air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Ferussaciidae. 

Most of the species in this genus live some distance underground. They are usually blind. Because of their subterranean habitat and their small size, they can be difficult to find alive.

When fresh, the shells are transparent. After they have been empty some time in the soil, they usually become an opaque milky-white. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Photos by George Konstantinou




Vitrea cyprina (Westerlund 1902) - Cyprus

Vitrea is a genus of small, air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Pristilomatidae
Photos by George Konstantinou



Eopolita protensa (Ferussac 1832) - Cyprus

Eopolita is a genus of gastropods belonging to the family Oxychilidae.

The species of this genus are found in Mediterranean

Photos by George Konstantinou




Milky crystal snail - Vitrea contracta (Westerlund 1871) - Cyprus

Vitrea contracta, the milky crystal snail, is a species of small, air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Pristilomatidae. 

Description
Vitrea contracta figure 4
For terms see gastropod shell.

The 2.2-2.6 mm. shell is colourless translucent and shiny. It is almost smooth with 4-5 whorls, the last whorl width seen from above 1.4-1.6 x of penultimate whorl. The umbilicus is moderately wide, becoming wider at the last whorl.

Distribution in Europe of Vitrea contracta
The coiled, rather small, dextral shell is strongly oblate-conical, almost disc-shaped. When mature, the shell is 1.8 to 3.0 (usually about 2 mm) wide (diameter) and 1.0 to 1.4 mm high. Viewed from its side, the seam is only slightly raised. The shell consists of 4 to 5 whorls, which increase slowly and regularly. The body whorl is relatively narrow. Seen from above, each whorl increases by about 1.4 to 1.6 times the size of the previous whorl. The top of the whorls has a flat curve, so that the seams are also very flat. The outline of the shell is well rounded, its bottom is relatively flat. The aperture has a flattened-elliptical shape in its entire circumference and is obliquely crescent-shaped because of the deep cut of the previous whorl. The outer lip is straight and tapering and not thickened . The umbilicus is deep and broad, becoming wider at the body whorl. All convolutions are visible in the navel.

The epidermis of the shell is colorless and translucent to slightly milky. The surface is very glossy. There are very fine, irregular growth lines and a suggestion of spiral lines

These snails live hidden in the litter, in loose soil, at the foot of rocks or among rubble, in meadows with rubble, forests with stones and rubble, but also in cool gorges and swampy alder grooves, even in holes and crevices. In protected biotopes they also remain active in winter. The species occurs in moist to dry habitats on calcareous soils.
Photos by George Konstantinou




Oxychilus cyprius (Pfeiffer 1847) - Cyprus

Oxychilus is a genus of small air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropods in the subfamily Oxychilinae of the family Oxychilidae, the glass snails

Photos by George Konstantinou

Photos by George Konstantinou 15/3/2024








Oxychilus mavromoustakisi (Haas 1934) - Εndemic to Cyprus

Εndemic to Cyprus

Oxychilus is a genus of small air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropods in the subfamily Oxychilinae of the family Oxychilidae, the glass snails

See also

List of non-marine molluscs of Cyprus - Freshwater snails and Land snails of Cyprus

Photos by George Konstantinou