The first record of Gyraulus cf. acronicus (Gastropoda, Heterobranchia, Planorbidae) in waterbodies of the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago

Abstract

The knowledge on diversity of freshwater molluscs in the Arctic islands of the Russian Federation remains incomplete. The present study provides the first record of the North Palaearctic species Gyraulus cf. acronicus (Férussac, 1807) on the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago. It is also the first finding of freshwater gastropods on the archipelago and the northernmost record for Gyraulus in the Palaearctic Region. The questions still remain: whether our finding belongs to a recent or a subfossil or fossil population, and how gastropods could colonize the Arctic islands. Several possibilities of dispersal are discussed: the former land-bridge once connecting the archipelago islands to the mainland, and the dispersal of snails with other animals after the Ice Sheet retreat.