Springsnails: A New Conservation Focus in Western North America

Abstract

Springsnails (genus Pyrgulopsis) are one of the most abundant and diverse members of the endemic western North American aquatic biota. These tiny gastropods are imperiled by threats ranging from groundwater pumping to livestock grazing. During the past 25 years, this longneglected element of biodiversity has emerged as a new focus of conservation-related activities, including protection of several species under the Endangered Species Act and monitoring and habitat restoration efforts. Molecular investigations have helped sharpen springsnail taxonomy and suggest that these animals cannot be managed using a priori assumptions of population structure. Despite this progress, there is an urgent need for additional studies of springsnail natural history, taxonomy, and genetics. The prospects for improving the protection and restoration of springsnail habitats are promising but are clouded by the overarching threat of groundwater mining, which may be addressed best by broader conservation efforts focused on regional groundwater-dependent ecosystems.

Two new subfossil species of springsnails (Hydrobiidae: Pyrgulopsis) from North Mexico and their relation with extant species from Cuatrociénegas

“…Pyrgulopsis, commonly known as springsnail, is the most diverse genus of North American freshwater gastropods and contains approximately 140 described species (Hershler et al, 2014;2016). The members of this genus live mostly in springs and have a very small geographic distribution (Hershler and Sada, 2002).…”

“…Many of the species in western North America, particularly at the Great Basin in the northern of Mexico, they are endemic and restricted to small areas or to a single spring. Hershler et al (2014) mentioned that members of the genus prefer emergent macrophytes and hard substrates as habitat. The oldest occurrence of Pyrgulopsis dates back to the Pliocene (Henderson, 1935) but there is molecular evidence that shows the genus colonized the region of the Lower Colorado River in the late Miocene (Hurt, 2004).…”

Groundwater Dependent Ecosystems: Classification, Identification Techniques and Threats

“…some Primulaceae, Toxicoscordion spp., Flaveria mcdougallii). Among invertebrates, hydrobiid spring snails commonly are restricted to springs sources and channels, particularly the Pyrgulopsis and Tryonia (Hershler 1998(Hershler , 2014, as are some members of the aquatic beetle families Elmidae and Dryopidae (Shepard 1993). In our studies of montane springs in the American Southwest, chloroperlid stoneflies and turbellarian flatworms are often springs-dependent species in coolcold natural waters.…”

The ecology of narrow-range endemic macro-invertebrates of Great Artesian Basin springs

“…Aquatic invertebrates appear to make up most of the "threatened community", and gastropods seem to be particularly diverse in the system (Ponder, 1995) (a similar trend seen in arid zone springs of North America (Hershler et al, 2014)). The current estimate of endemic invertebrate diversity is most likely an underestimate, as a large number of morphotypes and distinct clades remain undescribed Murphy et al, 2013;Murphy et al, 2015b;Ponder et al, 1995) and some taxa have not yet been the topic of system-wide sampling or analysis.…”

“…They are often home to high proportions of rare and endemic organisms (Unmack & Minckley 2008;Benke et al 2011;Fensham et al 2011;Hershler et al 2014) that have very small geographic distributions (<50km 2 ), many endemic to a single spring complex (Ponder &Colgan, 2002;Fensham et al 2011;Cantonati et al 2012a;Hershler et al 2014). Most of these endemics are invertebrates that are at elevated risk of extinction, as habitat loss impinges on their already restricted spatial distributions, and data deficiency combines with a low priority afforded to their conservation to hinder threat mitigation (Bland et al, 2012;Brown et al, 2008;Cardoso et al, 2011;Lydeard et al, 2004).…”