Comparative morpho-anatomy and mitochondrial phylogeny of Semisulcospiridae in Yunnan, south-western China, with description of four new species (Gastropoda :  Cerithioidea)

Abstract

The taxonomic history of Chinese semisulcospirids is confusing. Originally placed in Melania by late 19th century authors, species have subsequently been dispersed into four different genera, i.e. Semisulcospira Böttger, 1886, Senckenbergia Yen, 1939, Hua Chen, 1943, and Namrutua Abbott, 1948; however, these placements were not conducted within a phylogenetic context. Based on examination of newly collected samples from the Chinese provinces Yunnan, Guizhou, Jiangxi, Anhui and Chongqing, we revised the systematics of the Chinese Semisulcospiridae based on comparative anatomy and mitochondrial phylogenetics. We have examined shell, radular, and reproductive features and employed Bayesian and Maximum Likelihood analyses of partial sequences of mitochondrial genes cytochromec oxidaseI and 16S rRNA to resolve the phylogenetic relationships. The results revealed that Semisulcospiridae is represented by three genera in China, which differ in their reproductive strategy, including Semisulcospira, which is viviparous and contains three species (S. ningpoensis, S. gredleri, and S. pleuroceroides); Hua, which is oviparous and contains 11 species; and Koreoleptoxis, which is oviparous and contains one species. Namrutua and Senckenbergia are identified here as junior subjective synonyms of Semisulcospira. All taxa recognised herein formed well differentiated clades in three mitochondrial phylogeny, and could be reliably distinguished by differences in shell shape and sculpture. Four new species of Hua are described from Yunnan Province. This is the first comprehensive study to review the taxonomy of semisulcospirids in China. These species are sensitive to water quality, and economic development and infrastructure expansion have negatively impacted many populations. We fear that some species may have disappeared before being investigated or described scientifically. Therefore, this research will hopefully inspire further studies and surveys to foster our understanding of freshwater gastropod diversity in China. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:EF2147FD-9EEE-4922-90DC-76651EF9E6AE

Description of a New Species of Hua (Gastropoda: Semisulcospiridae) from Guizhou, China, Based on Morphology and Molecular Evidence

“…The Chinese Semisulcospiridae is represented by three genera: Semisulcospira , Hua , and Koreoleptoxis Burch and Jung, 1988 (Du et al, 2019b). The genera Hua and Semisulcospira were recorded in Guizhou Province, and five species of Hua have been recorded, namely, H. aubryana , H. intermedia , H. ovata Du and Yang, 2023, H. rotundata, and H. wujiangensis .…”

“…The freshwater snails of Hua Chen, 1943, which are mainly distributed in the Southeast Asian gastropods, typically inhabit clean rivers, streams, springs, and lakes. The Hua snails are oviparous with an oviparous orifice or a canal located on the side of the neck below the right cephalic tentacle; they also possess two lower edge teeth on the lower edge of the central tooth (Strong and Köhler, 2009; Du et al, 2019a, b). Chen (1943) established the genus Hua for Melania telonaria Heude, 1888 (type species), and classified an additional 10 species and one subspecies into this genus.…”

Supplementary material 1 from: Sawada N, Fuke Y, Miura O, Toyohara H, Nakano T (2024) Redescription of Semisulcospira reticulata (Mollusca, Semisulcospiridae) with description of a new species from Lake Biwa, Japan. Evolutionary Systematics 8(1): 127-144. https://doi.org/10.3897/evolsyst.8.124491

“…The genus is distributed in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and China, and it contains unique populations in the Lake Biwa water system in Japan (Davis 1969;Du et al 2019a). Of the 30 extant species, 18 are endemic to the water system (Watanabe and Nishino 1995;Du et al 2019b; Sawada and Fuke 2022; Suppl. material 1: table S1), and exhibit interspecific diversity in shell morphology, karyotypes, and habitat preferences (Burch 1968;Watanabe and Nishino 1995;Miura et al 2019).…”

A systematic revision of the genus Juga from fresh waters of the Pacific Northwest, USA (Cerithioidea, Semisulcospiridae)

“…Köhler (2016) transferred this species to Koreoleptoxis Burch & Jung, 1988 and later (Köhler 2017) hypothesized that other East Asian semisulcospirids would also fall here. Since then, Du et al (2019aDu et al ( , 2019b have significantly expanded our understanding of relationships among semisulcospirids from China, but nominal taxa from the Russian Far East have yet to be comprehensively revised and remain in taxonomic limbo. We agree with Köhler (2017) that their affinities likely lie among Asian species and do not consider them further here.…”