''Rissoa parva'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

of minute sea snail, a

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

gastropod mollusc or

micromollusc A micromollusk is a shelled mollusk which is extremely small, even at full adult size. The word is usually, but not exclusively, applied to marine mollusks, although in addition, numerous species of land snails and freshwater mollusks also ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Rissoidae Rissoidae is a large family of very small and minute sea snails with an operculum, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Rissooidea and the order Littorinimorpha. Distribution and habitat This family of snails is found worldwide. They ...

Taxonomy

The status of R. interrupta in relation to R. parva is still a point of discussion. Based on research of Wigham (1975), R. interrupta is considered by many authors as a variety of form of R. parva (Fretter & Graham, 1778; McKay & Smith, 1979). Nordsieck (1968) and Verduin (1976) think however that R. interrupta and R. parva are two different species. Both species have a sympatric appearance.

Description

Distribution

This species occurs in European waters, the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

and the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, ...

. Fossils have been found in Quaternary strata of

Rhodos In Greek mythology, Rhodos/Rhodus () or Rhode (), was the goddess and personification of the island of Rhodes and a wife of the sun god Helios. Parentage Various parents were given for Rhodos. Pindar makes her a daughter of Aphrodite with no ...

, Greece.

References

Da Costa E. M. (1778). Historia Naturalis Testaceorum Britanniae. London: Millan, White, Elmsley & Robson XII + 254 + VIII p., 17 pl
* Backeljau, T. (1986). ''Lijst van de recente mariene mollusken van België

ist of the recent marine molluscs of Belgium Ist or IST may refer to: Information Science and Technology * Bachelor's or Master's degree in Information Science and Technology * Graduate School / Faculty of Information Science and Technology, Hokkaido University, Japan * Graduate School ...

'' Koninklijk Belgisch Instituut voor Natuurwetenschappen: Brussels, Belgium. 106 pp. * Harms, J., 1993. ''Check list of species (algae, invertebrates and vertebrates) found in the vicinity of the island of Helgoland (North Sea, German Bight) - a review of recent records''. Helgoländer Meeresuntersuch. 47 1: 1-34. * Gofas, S.; Le Renard, J.; Bouchet, P. (2001). Mollusca, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). ''European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification''. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 180–213 * Muller, Y. (2004). ''Faune et flore du littoral du Nord, du Pas-de-Calais et de la Belgique: inventaire. oastal fauna and flora of the Nord, Pas-de-Calais and Belgium: inventory'' Commission Régionale de Biologie Région Nord Pas-de-Calais: France. 307 pp.

External links

''Ponder W. F. (1985). A review of the Genera of the Rissoidae (Mollusca: Mesogastropoda: Rissoacea).'' Records of the Australian Museum supplement 4: 1-221 p. 21
Rissoidae Molluscs of the Atlantic Ocean Molluscs of the Black Sea Molluscs of the Mediterranean Sea Taxa named by Emanuel Mendes da Costa Gastropods described in 1778 {{Rissoidae-stub