Lepyrium

The flat pebblesnail (''Lepyrium showalteri'') is a species of freshwater snail, an aquatic gastropod mollusk in the family Lithoglyphidae.

This species is endemic to the United States. This snail has been listed as endangered on the United States Fish and Wildlife Service list of endangered species since October 28, 1998.

''Lepyrium showalteri'' is the only species in the genus ''Lepyrium''. ''Lepyrium showalteri'' is the type species of the genus ''Lepyrium''. Lepyriidae is a synonym of Lithoglyphinae.

Description

The flat pebblesnail is a small snail in the family Lithoglyphidae; however, the species has a large and distinctive-looking shell. This snail's shell is also distinguished by its depressed spire and expanded, flattened body whorl. The shells are ovate in outline, flattened, and grow to high and 4 to wide. The umbilical area is imperforate (no opening), and there are 2 to 3 whorls which rapidly expand.

The anatomy of this species was described in detail by Thompson in 1984.Thompson F. G. (1984). "North American freshwater snail general of the hydrobiid subfamily Lithoglyphinae". ''Malacologia'' 25(1)
109
141.

Original description

Species ''Lepyrium showalteri'' was originally described as ''Neritina showalteri'' by Isaac Lea in 1861.

Lea's original text (the type description) reads as follows:

Distribution

This species is endemic to Alabama in the United States. It was historically known from:
* the mainstem Coosa River in Shelby County and Talladega County, Alabama;
* the Cahaba River in Bibb and Dallas County, Alabama;
* and the Little Cahaba River in Bibb County, Alabama.

The flat pebblesnail has not been found in the Coosa River portion of its range since the construction of the Lay Dam and Logan Martin Dam, and recent survey efforts have failed to locate any surviving populations outside of the Cahaba River drainage.Bogan A. E. & Pierson J. M. (1993). ''Survey of the aquatic gastropods of the Cahaba River Basin, Alabama: 1992''. Alabama Natural Heritage Program. Contract Number 1922.

The flat pebblesnail is currently known from one site on the Little Cahaba River, Bibb County, and from a single shoal series on the Cahaba River above the Fall Line, Shelby County, Alabama.

File:Map of Alabama highlighting Bibb County.svg, Bibb County, Alabama (marked red) where the species is found in the Little Cahaba River.
File:Map of Alabama highlighting Shelby County.svg, Shelby County, Alabama (marked red) where the species is known from the Cahaba River.

Ecology

Little is known of the natural history of this species. The flat pebblesnail is found attached to clean, smooth stones in rapid currents of river shoals. The eggs are laid in capsules on hard surfaces. The life span appears to be 1 year.Johnson P. pers. comm. (2005). In: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (2005)
''Recovery Plan for 6 Mobile River Basin Aquatic Snails''
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Jackson, Mississippi. 46 pp., page 5-6.

References

This article incorporates public domain text from the reference and a public domain work of the United States Government from the reference U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (2005)
''Recovery Plan for 6 Mobile River Basin Aquatic Snails''
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Jackson, Mississippi. 46 pp., page 5-6.

External links

* Tryon G. W. (1888–1889) ''Manual of Conchology, structural and systematic, with illustrations of the species''. 10
53plate 17
figure 81–82.

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3173245

Gastropods described in 1861
Endemic molluscs of the United States
Endemic fauna of Alabama
Lithoglyphidae
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
ESA endangered species