''Cochlicella acuta'',

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...

the pointed snail, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of 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 the appropriate s ...

of small but very high- spired, air-breathing

land snail A land snail is any of the numerous species of snail that live on land, as opposed to the sea snails and freshwater snails. ''Land snail'' is the common name for terrestrial gastropod mollusks that have shells (those without shells are known as ...

, a

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 ...

mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is e ...

in the family

Geomitridae Geomitridae is a Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic Family (biology), family of small to medium-sized air-breathing land snails, Terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Helicoidea.MolluscaBase eds. (2021). M ...

. MolluscaBase eds. (2020). MolluscaBase. Cochlicella acuta (O. F. Müller, 1774). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=426379 on 2020-08-25

Distribution

This species is native to parts of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. It inhabits south-western Europe including

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, and western Europe including

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

. In the British Isles it lives in dunes, sandhills, and grassy downs close to the sea, chiefly in the south and west of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, on islands off the west coast of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, and along the

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

coast. It is extremely abundant in some areas.Step E. 1901
''Shell life: an introduction to the British Mollusca''
London, New York, F. Warne & co., page 362. The species has been introduced in the eastern

Mediterranean 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 e ...

, including

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

. It has also been introduced to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, where it has become a problematic

invasive Invasive may refer to: *Invasive (medical) procedure *Invasive species *Invasive observation, especially in reference to surveillance *Invasively progressive spread of disease from one organ in the body to another, especially in reference to cancer ...

, or

pest Pest or The Pest may refer to: Science and medicine * Pest (organism), an animal or plant deemed to be detrimental to humans or human concerns ** Weed, a plant considered undesirable * Infectious disease, an illness resulting from an infection ** ...

species.

Habitat

This species does well on sandy calcareous soils, and often prefers a coastal setting such as sand

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

s. It

aestivate Aestivation ( la, aestas (summer); also spelled estivation in American English) is a state of animal dormancy, similar to hibernation, although taking place in the summer rather than the winter. Aestivation is characterized by inactivity and a ...

s by attaching itself to vertical surfaces such as fence posts, tall weeds and so on.

Shell description

The

shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses ** Thin-shell structure Science Biology * Seashell, a hard ou ...

of this species is an unusual shape for a helicid, elongatedly conical, 10 to 20 mm high, with a width of only 4 to 7 mm. The spire tapers regularly, but ends in a blunt tip. The oval aperture has a thin lip, and the narrow umbilicus is almost covered. The shell is very variable in color and markings, often having a cream or off-white background with many pale brown blotches, which are sometimes organized into spiral bands. The shell is often streaked across the whorls with brown. There are sometimes two spiral bands of dark brown or black, which are frequently reduced to only one band, restricted to the body-whorl. Sometimes there are no bands at all. Welter-Schultes description. For terms see

gastropod shell The gastropod shell is part of the body of a Gastropoda, gastropod or snail, a kind of mollusc. The shell is an exoskeleton, which protects from predators, mechanical damage, and dehydration, but also serves for muscle attachment and calcium s ...

The 9-15 x 4-7 mm shell has 8-11 whorls, in juvenile specimens with a sharp edge. It is evenly white or with brown spots. The shell is less brownish, more slender and higher than the shell of ''

Cochlicella barbara ''Cochlicella barbara'', now known as ''Prietocella barbara'', is a species of small but high- spired, air-breathing land snail, a pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Geomitridae. Distribution This species is native to Europe. It occurs ...

'' and upper whorls are slightly more rounded in ''C. acuta'' (juveniles have a much sharper edge at the periphery of the lowest whorl). The animal is very light yellowish, dorsum with blackish brown pigments, one dark medial line on dorsum, two dark lines (= retractor muscles) from the sides to the upper tentacles.

Ecology

''Cochlicella acuta'' is an intermediate host for the terrestrial

trematode Trematoda is a class of flatworms known as flukes. They are obligate internal parasites with a complex life cycle requiring at least two hosts. The intermediate host, in which asexual reproduction occurs, is usually a snail. The definitive host ...

parasite ''

Brachylaima cribbi ''Brachylaima cribbi'' is a species of terrestrial trematode parasites in the family Brachylaimidae. Overview Intermediate hosts for ''Brachylaima cribbi'' are terrestrial snails '' Cochlicella acuta'', ''Cernuella virgata'' and ''Theba pisana ...

''.Butcher A. R. & Grove D. I. 2006
''Seasonal variation in rates of sporocyst and metacercarial infection by Brachylaima cribbi in helicid and hygromiid land snails on the Yorke Peninsula, South Australia''
- Australian Journal of Zoology, 53(6): 375–382.

References

* Pulteney, R. (1799). Catalogue of the birds, shells, and some of the more rare plants of Dorsetshire. London, Nichols, 92 pp. * Provoost, S.; Bonte, D. (Ed.) (2004). Animated dunes: a view of biodiversity at the Flemish coast evende duinen: een overzicht van de biodiversiteit aan de Vlaamse kust Mededelingen van het Instituut voor Natuurbehoud, 22. Instituut voor Natuurbehoud: Brussel, Belgium. . 416, ill., appendices pp. * Kerney, M.P., Cameron, R.A.D. & Jungbluth, J-H. (1983). Die Landschnecken Nord- und Mitteleuropas. Ein Bestimmungsbuch für Biologen und Naturfreunde, 384 pp., 24 plates.

External links

''Cochlicella acuta''
at

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''Cochlicella acuta''
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