Epiglypta is a monotypic genus of glass snails that is endemic to Australia’s Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea.[1] The species is Epiglypta howeinsulae, also known as the ribbed glass snail; it has not been collected since 1920 and may be extinct due to rat predation.[3]
| Epiglypta | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Subclass: | Heterobranchia |
| Order: | Stylommatophora |
| Family: | Helicarionidae |
| Subfamily: | Helicarioninae |
| Genus: | Epiglypta Pilsbry, 1893 |
| Species: | E. howeinsulae
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| Binomial name | |
| Epiglypta howeinsulae (Cox, 1873)
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| Synonyms[1][2] | |
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Genus synonymy
Species synonymy
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Description edit
The shell of adult snails is 17–21 mm in height, with a diameter of 31.9–34.8 mm, subglobose with a moderately raised spire, with rounded whorls, impressed sutures and closely spaced radial ribs. It is yellowish-brown in colouration. The umbilicus is narrowly open in juveniles, closed by reflection in adults. The aperture is ovately lunate. It is identifiable by its large and distinctly ribbed shell.[3]
Distribution and habitat edit
The snail's distribution was limited to the vicinity of the summits of the southern mountains of the island, where it was found beneath stones and on wet rock faces.[3]
References edit
- ^ a b "Epiglypta". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
- ^ "Epiglypta howeinsulae". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
- ^ a b c Hyman, Isabel; Köhler, Frank (2020). A Field Guide to the Land Snails of Lord Howe Island. Sydney: Australian Museum. ISBN 978-0-9750476-8-2.