''Aplexa'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing

freshwater snail Freshwater snails are gastropod mollusks that live in fresh water. There are many different families. They are found throughout the world in various habitats, ranging from ephemeral pools to the largest lakes, and from small seeps and springs t ...

aquatic Aquatic means relating to water; living in or near water or taking place in water; does not include groundwater, as "aquatic" implies an environment where plants and animals live. Aquatic(s) may also refer to: * Aquatic animal, either vertebrate ...

pulmonate Pulmonata or pulmonates is an informal group (previously an order, and before that, a subclass) of snails and slugs characterized by the ability to breathe air, by virtue of having a pallial lung instead of a gill, or gills. The group inclu ...

gastropod Gastropods (), commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, freshwater, and fro ...

mollusk Mollusca is a phylum of protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The ...

s in the family Physidae.

Shell description

These small snails are quite distinctive, because they have shells that are sinistral, which means that if you hold the shell such that the spire is pointing up, then the aperture is on the left-hand side. The shells of ''Aplexa'' species have a long and large

aperture In optics, the aperture of an optical system (including a system consisting of a single lens) is the hole or opening that primarily limits light propagated through the system. More specifically, the entrance pupil as the front side image o ...

, a relatively high and pointed

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...

, and no operculum. The shells are thin and corneous and rather transparent.

Species

Species in the genus ''Aplexa'' include: * '' Aplexa atava'' White, 1877 * '' Aplexa brevispirata'' (Cossmann, 1913) * '' Aplexa disjuncta'' (White, 1879) * '' Aplexa elongata'' (Say, 1821) - the lance aplexa * '' Aplexa gigantea'' (Michaud, 1837) * ''

Aplexa grasseti ''Aplexa'' is a genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Physidae. Shell description These small snails are quite distinctive, because they have shells that ar ...

'' (Matheron, 1878) * '' Aplexa heberti'' (Deshayes, 1863) * '' Aplexa hypnorum'' (Linnaeus, 1758) - the moss bladder snail * '' Aplexa jaimei'' (Hermite, 1879) * '' Aplexa kasekikabe'' (Isaji, 2010) * '' Aplexa macerata'' (Russell, 1937) * '' Aplexa militaria'' (Yen & Reeside, 1946) * '' Aplexa morrisonana'' (Yen & Reeside, 1946) * '' Aplexa praelonga'' (Matheron ex Heer, 1861) * '' Aplexa primigenia'' (Deshayes, 1863) * ''

Aplexa prisca ''Aplexa'' is a genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing freshwater snails, Aquatic animal, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Physidae. Shell description These small snails are quite distinctive, because they have ...

'' (Noulet, 1854) * ''

Aplexa pseudogigantea ''Aplexa'' is a genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Physidae. Shell description These small snails are quite distinctive, because they have shells that ar ...

'' (F. Sandberger, 1870) * ''

Aplexa pulchella ''Aplexa'' is a genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Physidae. Shell description These small snails are quite distinctive, because they have shells that ar ...

'' (A. d'Orbigny, 1850) * †''

Aplexa ricei ''Aplexa'' is a genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Physidae. Shell description These small snails are quite distinctive, because they have shells that ar ...

'' (Russell, 1957) * ''

Aplexa rivalis ''Aplexa rivalis'' is a species of small air-breathing freshwater snail, an aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Physidae, a family which are sometimes known as the bladder snails. Description ''Rivalis Aplexa'' has a thin shell lev ...

'' (Maton & Rackett, 1807) * '' Aplexa subelongata'' (Meek & Hayden, 1856) * '' Aplexa subhypnorum'' (Gottschick, 1920)

Shell description

Species

References

Further reading