Little river snails

Code KG029999

Class Gastropoda: Subclass Prosobranchia: Order Monotocardia.

A cosmopolitan family of operculate gastropods, with 12 genera and about 67 named species or subspecies in Australia. Habitat includes estuaries, lakes, rivers and artesian springs in inland Australia. The distribution extends to eastern and south-eastern Australia, Tasmania, northern South Australia and Southern Queensland. Several species are of limited distribution, and localised radiations appear to be occurring in some areas (eg. in Tasmania, Lord Howe Island, and some artesian spring systems).

The family is currently under revision, notably by Ponder and colleagues at the Australian Museum. The genera Coxiella and Glacidorbis, have been moved to Pomatiopsidae and Glacidorbidae respectively, and the species called Hydrobia (= Paludina) buccinoides has been identified as a synonym for Assiminea (Metassiminea) buccinoides .

Some species show considerable intraspecific variation in shell morphology, especially in sculpture. Some have wide salinity tolerances. Many are hosts or intermediate hosts of trematode flatworms. At least some species are wholly or largely parthenogenetic.

Reference:

Smith, B.J. (1996) Identification keys to the Families and Genera of Bivalve and Gastropod Molluscs found in Australian Inland Waters . Cooperative Research Centre for Freshwater Ecology Identification Guide No. 6., Albury, NSW. (includes references to Ponder and colleagues studies).