''Giffordius'' is a
genus 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 ...
s, terrestrial
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
Polygyridae.
The two known species, found on
Isla de Providencia (or Old Providence), were named after the early conservationist and politician,
Gifford Pinchot and his wife, Cornelia, whose expedition discovered them. These snails are unusual among polygyrids in being
ovoviviparous rather than
oviparous
Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...
.
[Pilsbry H. A. (1940). "Land Mollusca of North America (North of Mexico)". ''Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia'', Monograph 3, 1(2): 577.]
Species
The genus ''Giffordius'' contains the following species:
* ''
Giffordius corneliae
''Giffordius'' is a genus of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Polygyridae.
The two known species, found on Isla de Providencia (or Old Providence), were named after the early conservationist and ...
''
* ''
Giffordius pinchotii
''Giffordius'' is a genus of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Polygyridae.
The two known species, found on Isla de Providencia (or Old Providence), were named after the early conservationist and ...
''
See also
*
Pinchot South Sea Expedition
References
Polygyridae
{{Polygyridae-stub