Shell elongate; up to about 3.8 mm in length, operculum with few rudimentary pimples on inner side, no white smear; female lacking seminal receptacle; male with penial lobe in middle of penis. The stomach is very similar to that of the species of Fluviopupa, including the type species. The most obvious difference between the present species and other described species of Fluviopupa is the absence of a seminal receptacle.
Austropupa kessneri (Ponder & Shea, 2014)
Class Gastropoda
Infraclass Caenogastropoda
Order Littorinida
Suborder Rissoidina
Superfamily Truncatelloidea
Family Tateidae
Genus Austropupa Ponder Nimbs & Shea, 2023. (Type species: Fluviopupa kessneri Ponder & Shea, 2014).
Original name: Fluviopupa kessneri Ponder, & Shea, 2014. In Ponder, W. F. and Shea, M. E. 2014. A new species of the Fluviopupa group (Caenogastropoda: Tateidae) from north-east Queensland, Australia, Molluscan Research 34:78.
Type locality: Little Mulgrave River on Little Mulgrave Road, near bridge on Gillies Highway, Far North Queensland.
In roots along edges of side pond and main river, on leaves on gravel and in pockets of submerged leaves along the bank in shallow water and on sand in shallow water.
This species appears to have a rather narrow distribution in the Mulgrave River and its tributary, Little Mulgrave River, as well as some of the small tributaries of these rivers, in north-eastern Queensland. It is likely, however, that this species is more widespread within the Little Mulgrave and Mulgrave Rivers and their tributaries than current sampling suggests.
This species was originally described as a species of Fluviopupa, a genus found in certain Pacific islands (including Lord Howe Id), and possibly Papua New Guinea.
Ponder, W. F. & Shea, M. E. (2014). A new species of the Fluviopupa group (Caenogastropoda: Tateidae) from north-east Queensland, Australia. Molluscan Research 34: 71-78.
Ponder, W. F., Nimbs, M. J. & Shea, M. E. (2023) Hyporheic Tateidae (Gastropoda: Truncatelloidea) from the Flinders Ranges, South Australia and Judbarra (Gregory) National Park, western Northern Territory, Australia, with some taxonomic notes on the family. Molluscan Research 44, 63-83.
