Premium
Conserved shell disguises diversity in M esodontrachia land snails from the A ustralian M onsoon T ropics ( G astropoda: C amaenidae)
Author(s) -
Criscione Francesco,
Köhler Frank
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
zoologica scripta
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.204
H-Index - 64
eISSN - 1463-6409
pISSN - 0300-3256
DOI - 10.1111/zsc.12011
Subject(s) - biology , polyphyly , monophyly , gastropoda , taxonomy (biology) , taxon , zoology , ecology , land snail , systematics , phylogenetics , clade , biochemistry , gene
We comprehensively revise the taxonomy of the camaenid genus M esodontrachia Solem, 1985, which is endemic to the Victoria River District and East Kimberley in the north‐western A ustralian M onsoon Tropics based on comparative analyses of key morphological features and mitochondrial DNA sequences. We examined newly collected samples from several collection sites spread over nearly 20 000 km 2 of mostly inaccessible land, which represented all three currently known and three previously undescribed species. All species were initially identified as members of Mesodontrachia based on their similar, putatively typical shell. However, M esodontrachia as so delimited was polyphyletic in a mitochondrial phylogeny with respect to several other camaenid genera from NW A ustralia. Contrary to the shell, we found considerable variation in the penial anatomy that was consistent with the mt DNA differentiation. To retain monophyletic taxa, we propose a revised taxonomy whereby Mesodontrachia is maintained as a monotypic taxon. In addition, four genera ( N odulabium, O totrachia , P seudomesodontrachia and V incentrachia ) and three species ( P . gregoriana , O . compressa and N . solidum) are newly described. The shell of all these taxa is highly conserved and of little taxonomic utility. Shell similarity is attributed to a similar life style in a similar and harsh environment.