Carychiinae
Bulbous dwarf horn snail ( Carychium minimum)
The dwarf 's horn snails ( Carychiidae ) are a family of very small, rural live snails from the order of snails ( Pulmonata ). The currently known about 45 species live in permanently damp or extremely wet habitats, usually in deep, undisturbed leaf litter, in wet meadows and marshes, on scree slopes and in caves. The dwarf 's horn snails be expected because of their small size, the non-systematic and rather fuzzy set of Mikrogastropoden. Due to their small size and secretive lifestyle constantly new types and resources are currently discovered.
Features
The right-handed case the representative of the family are hochkonisch to spindle-shaped and only a few millimeters high. They are off-white to colorless translucent. The mouth rim is thickened and in the mouth protrude teeth and fins inside. The animals are hermaphrodites, the mating is one-sided, at least in some species, ie an animal acts than males, an animal than females. The eggs are very large compared to the size of the animals. It can be a made to several generations per year. At least some species of the genus Carychium still have functioning eyes. In the genus Zospeum eyes are degenerated and the animals are blind.
Geographical distribution, habitat and behavior
The distribution of the family is Holarctic. Most recently, the genus Zospeum was also discovered in caves in South Korea and South China ..
The representatives of the genus Carychium occur in wet or constantly moist habitats such as swamps, wet meadows, lowland forests and the shore zones of water bodies. They live in the (wet) leaf litter, dead wood and in between bank vegetation from the level in sea level to the mountains. The exception eyeless species of the genus, however, are marked Zospeum caveman or occur in karst columns. They also come from sea level to the mountains (up to 1850 m ) before.
Taxonomy and systematics
This family-group taxon was erected in 1830 by John Gwyn Jeffreys as Carychiadae. Bouchet & Rocroi (2005) they represent a subfamily to the coastal snails ( Ellobiidae ). In the latest work, the taxon is again seen as a family within the Ellobioidea. Currently, the (? Sub) family are associated with only two genera with about 45 species:
- Family dwarf horn snails ( Carychiidae Jeffrey, 1830) Genus Carychium Müller, 1773 Carychium arboreum Dourson, 2012
- Carychium Biondii Paulucci, 1882
- Carychium clappi Hubricht, 1959
- Carychium cymatoplax Pilsbry, 1901
- Carychium exiguum (Say, 1822)
- Carychium exile I. Lea, 1842
- Carychium floridanum Clapp, 1918
- Carychium hachijoensis Pilsbry, 1902
- Carychium hellenicum Bank & Gittenberger, 1985
- Carychium ibazoricum Bank & Gittenberger, 1985
- Carychium jardineanum ( Chitty, 1853)
- Carychium mariae Paulucci, 1878
- Carychium mexicanum Pilsbry, 1891
- Bulbous dwarf horn snail ( Carychium minimum Müller, 1774)
- Carychium nannodes G. H. Clapp, 1905
- Pilsbry & Hirase Carychium nipponense, 1904, Japan
- Carychium noduliferum Reinhardt, 1877
- Carychium occidentale Pilsbry, 1891
- Carychium paganettii Zimmermann, 1925
- Carychium pessimum Pilsbry, 1902
- Carychium riparium Hubricht, 1978
- Carychium schlickumi Bush, 1977
- Carychium sibiricum Gerst Feldt, 1859
- Carychium stygium Call, 1897
- Slender dwarf horn snail ( Carychium tridentatum ( Risso, 1826) )
- Zospeum allegrettii Conci, 1956
- Zospeum alpestre Freyer, 1855 Zospeum alpestre alpestre Freyer, 1855
- Zospeum alpestre kupitzense A.Stummer, 1984,
- Zospeum alpestre bolei Slapnik
- Zospeum frauenfeldii frauenfeldii ( Freyer, 1855)
- Zospeum frauenfeldii osolei Slapnik, 1994
- Zospeum spelaeum spelaeum ( Rossmaessler, 1839)
- Zospeum spelaeum schmidtii ( Frauenfeld, 1854)