Sphincterochila cariosula
Encyclopedia
Sphincterochila cariosula is a species
of air-breathing land snail
, a terrestrial
pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Sphincterochilidae
.
in historical times.
is subimperforate, carinate, globosely convex above, carious, somewhat flattened below, soiled white, with a tubercularly eroded filiform sutural carina. The shell has 5 somewhat flattened whorls
. The upper margin of the aperture
is subdeflected. The width of the shell is 16–19 mm and the height is 11–15 mm.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of air-breathing land snail
Land snail
A land snail is any of the many species of snail that live on land, as opposed to those that live in salt water and fresh water. Land snails are terrestrial gastropod mollusks that have shells, It is not always an easy matter to say which species are terrestrial, because some are more or less...
, a terrestrial
Terrestrial animal
Terrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land , as compared with aquatic animals, which live predominantly or entirely in the water , or amphibians, which rely on a combination of aquatic and terrestrial habitats...
pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Sphincterochilidae
Sphincterochilidae
Sphincterochilidae is a taxonomic family of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Helicoidea ....
.
Subpecies
- Sphincterochila cariosula cariosula (Michaud, 1833)
- Sphincterochila cariosula hispanica (Westerlund, 1891) - synonym Helix hispanica. The subspecies is distributed in Spain.
Distribution
The indigenous distribution of the species is Algeria. The species was introduced to Vélez-Málaga in southern Spain and to western MallorcaMallorca
Majorca or Mallorca is an island located in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the Balearic Islands.The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Cabrera Archipelago is administratively grouped with Majorca...
in historical times.
Shell description
The shellGastropod shell
The gastropod shell is a shell which is part of the body of a gastropod or snail, one kind of mollusc. The gastropod shell is an external skeleton or exoskeleton, which serves not only for muscle attachment, but also for protection from predators and from mechanical damage...
is subimperforate, carinate, globosely convex above, carious, somewhat flattened below, soiled white, with a tubercularly eroded filiform sutural carina. The shell has 5 somewhat flattened whorls
Whorl (mollusc)
A whorl is a single, complete 360° revolution or turn in the spiral growth of a mollusc shell. A spiral configuration of the shell is found in of numerous gastropods, but it is also found in shelled cephalopods including Nautilus, Spirula and the large extinct subclass of cephalopods known as the...
. The upper margin of the aperture
Aperture (mollusc)
The aperture is an opening in certain kinds of mollusc shells: it is the main opening of the shell, where part of the body of the animal emerges for locomotion, feeding, etc....
is subdeflected. The width of the shell is 16–19 mm and the height is 11–15 mm.