Endemic Freshwater Molluscs of Cuba and Their Conservation Status

Abstract

Cuba is one of the richest places in malacological fauna in the world, especially in land snails, hosting a high degree of endemism. A study on the distribution of freshwater molluscs that occur within the limits of protected areas was carried out. The objective was to determine the status of the endemic species and the potential threats of introduced snails. It was found that the inclusion of freshwater molluscs is not a criterion for proposing protected areas no matter how ecologically important they actually can be. A total of 42 species of freshwater molluscs occur in Cuba, but only 24 exist in the National System of Protected Areas. More critical is the fact that of the 10 Cuban endemics, three are not protected and the distribution data on all of them are not abundant. Introduced species such as Tarebia granifera and Melanoides tuberculata are spread throughout the country and might be a threat for endemics and other native snails. Data on the distribution of endemic molluscs is presented and the role of some introduced/invasive species is discussed. Keywords: Molluscs, Freshwater, Ecology, Conservation, Cuba Resumen Cuba es uno de los sitios de mayor riqueza de moluscos en el mundo, especialmente de moluscos terrestres en donde muestra un alto porciento de endemismo. Se realizó un estudio sobre la distribución de moluscos fluviales que existen dentro de los límites de las áreas protegidas con el objetivo de determinar el estado de las especies endémicas y las amenazas potenciales de algunas especies introducidas. Se encontró que la presencia de moluscos fluviales no es utilizada como criterio a la hora de proponer áreas protegidas independientemente de la importancia ecológica que presentan. Un total de 42 especies de moluscos fluviales existen en Cuba, pero solo 24 aparecen en el Sistema Nacional de Áreas Protegidas. Más crítico es el hecho de que de las diez especies endémicas (23.8%), tres no se encuentran protegidas y los datos sobre su distribución no son abundantes. Especies introducidas como Tarebia granifera y Melanoides tuberculata se han dispersado por todo el país y pueden ser una amenaza para especies endémicas y otras especies nativas. Se presentan datos sobre la distribución de moluscos endémicos y se discute sobre el papel de algunas especies introducidas / invasivas sobre los moluscos endémicos.

A database of freshwater macroinvertebrate occurrence records across Cuba

“…We highlight that the database is welcoming future contributions. Among the taxa analyzed here, Mollusca is the taxa group for which the distribution data is not yet openly available despite that the data has been collated, digitized, georeferenced and stored systematically, such as by the Laboratory of Malacology at the Tropical Medicine Institute of Cuba who maintains a relational database with this information from 1980s to the present 50 , 51 .…”

First Record of Marisa cornuarietis (Linné, 1758) in Jutiapa, Guatemala

“…Some species of fluvial mollusks intervene in the transmission of parasites of doctor-veterinary relevance [1][2][3][4][5][6], however, the wealth of species of this group turns out to be very scarce [7], and even several they have been introduced and they threaten the distribution of other native species of mollusks [8].…”

Gastropods alien to South Africa cause severe environmental harm in their global alien ranges across habitats

“…Here, we present the first global assessment of environmental and socioeconomic impacts of alien gastropods, by applying the EICAT and SEICAT scoring schemes to the gastropods alien to South Africa. Because South Africa has experienced introductions of globally problematic alien gastropods across aquatic and terrestrial habitats (Barker, ; Griffiths & Picker, ; Herbert, ; Kappes, Delgado, Alonso, & Ibáñez, ; Perera & Valderrama, ), it provides a representative case study upon which to base a global analysis of alien gastropod impact. We test whether environmental impact severities of alien gastropods are correlated with their socioeconomic impacts, and whether there are differences in impact severity among habitats and impact mechanisms, respectively.…”