''Aplexa'' is a
genus of small, left-handed or sinistral, air-breathing
freshwater snail
Freshwater snails are gastropod mollusks which 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 ...
s,
aquatic 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 includ ...
gastropod
The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda ().
This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...
mollusks 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, a relatively high and pointed
spire, and no
operculum. The shells are thin and corneous and rather transparent.
Species
Species in the genus ''Aplexa'' include:
* ''
Aplexa atava
''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 a ...
'' White, 1877
* ''
Aplexa brevispirata
''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 a ...
'' (Cossmann, 1913)
* ''
Aplexa disjuncta
''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 a ...
'' (White, 1879)
* ''
Aplexa elongata
''Sibirenauta elongata'' is a species of gastropods belonging to the family Physidae
Physidae, common name the bladder snails, is a monophyletic taxonomic family of small air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod molluscs ...
'' (Say, 1821) - the lance aplexa
* ''
Aplexa gigantea
''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 a ...
'' (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 a ...
'' (Matheron, 1878)
* ''
Aplexa heberti
''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 a ...
'' (Deshayes, 1863)
* ''
Aplexa hypnorum
''Aplexa hypnorum'', or by the common name, the moss bladder snail, 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 ...
'' (Linnaeus, 1758) - the moss bladder snail
* ''
Aplexa jaimei
''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 a ...
'' (Hermite, 1879)
* ''
Aplexa kasekikabe
''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 a ...
'' (Isaji, 2010)
* ''
Aplexa macerata'' (Russell, 1937)
* ''
Aplexa militaria
''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 a ...
'' (Yen & Reeside, 1946)
* ''
Aplexa morrisonana
''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 a ...
'' (Yen & Reeside, 1946)
* ''
Aplexa praelonga
''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 a ...
'' (Matheron ex Heer, 1861)
* ''
Aplexa primigenia
''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 a ...
'' (Deshayes, 1863) * ''
Aplexa prisca'' (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 a ...
'' (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 a ...
'' (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 a ...
'' (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 le ...
'' (Maton & Rackett, 1807)
* ''
Aplexa subelongata'' (Meek & Hayden, 1856)
* ''
Aplexa subhypnorum'' (Gottschick, 1920)
References
Further reading
"Genus summary for ''Aplexa''" AnimalBase.
* Janus, Horst, 1965. ‘’The young specialist looks at land and freshwater molluscs’’, Burke, London
{{Taxonbar, from=Q618707
Physidae