''Euhadra peliomphala'' 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 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
terrestrial
Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth.
Terrestrial may also refer to:
* Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...
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
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Bradybaenidae
Bradybaeninae is a taxonomic subfamily of medium-sized to small land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Camaenidae, superfamily Helicoidea.MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Bradybaeninae Pilsbry, 1934 (1898). Acc ...
.
This species is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. The species exhibits exceptional geographical variation in its
mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial D ...
.
Subspecies
''Euhadra peliomphala'' has 4
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
:
* ''Euhadra peliomphala kunoensis''
Kuroda ''in'' Masuda & Habe, 1989
* ''Euhadra peliomphala nimbosa''
(Crosse, 1868)
* ''Euhadra peliomphala peliomphala''
( Pfeiffer, 1850)
* ''Euhadra peliomphala simodae''
(Jay, 1856)
Hormonal control
As ''Euhadra peliomphala'' matures sexually, it develops a "head-wart" between the optic
tentacle
In zoology, a tentacle is a flexible, mobile, and elongated organ present in some species of animals, most of them invertebrates. In animal anatomy, tentacles usually occur in one or more pairs. Anatomically, the tentacles of animals work main ...
s. The development of the "head-wart" parallels the development of the snail's reproductive system. The "head-wart" releases the steroid hormone,
testosterone
Testosterone is the primary sex hormone and anabolic steroid in males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of Male reproductive system, male reproductive tissues such as testes and prostate, as well as promoting secondar ...
, throughout the body before mating.
[Naokuni Takeda. 198]
''Hormonal control of head-wart development in the snail, Euhadra peliomphala''
Embryol. exp. Morph. Vol. 60, pp. 57-69.
References
External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q11342012
peliomphala
Gastropods described in 1850