The genus Cerithidea Swainson, 1840 (Gastropoda: Potamididae) in the Indo-West Pacific region

Abstract

Members of the genus Cerithidea are common components of the fauna of mangrove forests, tidal swamps and salt marshes in the Indo-West Pacific province, in marine and brackish conditions. The snails typically rest on the trunks of trees and other vegetation and migrate to the substrate to feed at low tide. In many areas mangrove habitats are under threat and some Cerithidea species are therefore considered to be endangered. In current taxonomic literature, ten species are recognized on the basis of shell morphology. A recently published molecular phylogenetic analysis has increased this to fifteen. The present study is a systematic account of these fifteen recognized species. Of these, two are newly described: C. houbricki and C. andamanensis. The species accounts include full synonymies, detailed descriptions of shells based on 621 museum samples, descriptions of living animals, distribution records and maps, reviews of habitat and ecology, and notes on conservation status.

Allopatry and overlap in a clade of snails from mangroves and mud flats in the Indo-West Pacific and Mediterranean (Gastropoda: Potamididae:Cerithideopsilla)

“…The absence of Cerithideopsilla species from the ‘eastern Indonesian corridor’ (the oceanic area of low primary productivity between Sulawesi and New Guinea, including the Banda Sea; Reid et al ., ) is striking. Distributions in this area are not very well known, but nevertheless this absence is apparently not a sampling artefact, because other mangrove‐associated molluscs from the area are well represented in museum collections (Reid, , ). A similar avoidance of this region of low productivity has been reported in littorinids with distributions of a ‘continental’ type (e.g.…”

“…Both the fossil record and the phylogenetic reconstruction of ancestral habitats suggest that the living potamidids are an adaptive radiation that has been associated with mangroves since its origin in the Middle Eocene (Reid et al, 2008). Detailed molecular and morphological analysis of Cerithidea has increased its known diversity from ten to 15 species (Reid et al, 2013;Reid, 2014), and of IWP Cerithideopsis from one to three species (Reid & Claremont, 2014), although study of Cerithideopsis in Central America has suggested a reduction in its diversity (Miura et al, 2010(Miura et al, , 2012.…”

“…and three Cerithideopsis spp.) show strikingly allopatric, closely adjoining distributions on the scale of seas, termed the 'mosaic' model (Reid et al, 2013;Reid, 2014;Reid & Claremont, 2014). Overlap between sister species is non-existent and high regional diversity is built up through a mosaic of smaller distributions and by overlap only between clades with contrasting ecology.…”

Morfometric Variations and Long Weight Relationships Red Eye Snail (Cerithidea obtusa)

“…This shows that on all stations, Cerithidea obtusa can grow and develop well. Alternatively, the height of this SpH is thought to be due to increasing age, the larger the size of the dimensions of the shell, although at the time of reaching the maximum size, Cerithidea obtusa ceases to grow towards this spire height dimension except for the thick dimensions of the lips of this gastropod shell which may increase [12][13][14].…”

The complete mitochondrial genome of Cerithidea sinensis (Philippi, 1848)

“…The Cerithidea sinensis is a member of the genus Cerithidea, which is common and important component of mangrove forests, tidal swaps, and salt marshes in the coast of south china sea, in marine and brackish conditions (Reid 2014). Figuring out how the C. sinensis co-evolved in the mangrove ecosystem requires a deeper understanding of molecular genetics.…”