Papilloderma altonagai

Papilloderma altonagai is a Nacktschneckenart from the order of terrestrial snails ( gastropod ). It is the only species of the genus Papilloderma, which in turn is the sole genus of the family Papillodermatidae ( and the superfamily Papillodermatoidea ).

Features

The animals are stretched to max. about 3 cm long and relatively slender; the shape may also be described as worm- shaped. The shell plate is very small and is located approximately in the middle of the back of the animal. The cabinet is very rudimentary and only consists of a flattened, but spirally rolled plates in the mantle. It is almost completely covered by the mantle, only a small portion is visible through a small opening in the shell. Right next to the housing rudiment is the breathing hole ( Pneumostom ). The top of the body is covered with regular rows of conical papillae, the front obliquely to the front - bottom, in the middle almost straight down and in the back of obliquely backwards and downwards. On the back, a slight keel is formed. The sole of the foot is narrow and undivided. The body is off-white, wherein the backing is colored darker, as the papillae. There is no pine present. The radula ( rasping ) has 12-14 teeth per transverse row, there are about 23 transverse rows available. Within a transverse row no central tooth is present, the lateral and marginal teeth showing only one peak ( unicuspidat ).

Life, the occurrence and distribution

Over the life of Papilloderma altonagai little is known. Because of the radula is believed that she lives predatory. The species has so far been detected only in the north of Spain ( Asturias and Cantabria ) in about 700 m above sea level. She lives there on moist meadows very hidden under rocks or in crevices. It is therefore difficult to find; only very few have ever been found. Meaningful information on the frequency and extent are therefore not to provide so far.