''Goweriana'' is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of pinhead or dot snails that 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 ...

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 ...

Lord Howe Island Lord Howe Island (; formerly Lord Howe's Island) is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, part of the Australian state of New South Wales. It lies directly east of mainland P ...

in the

Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea (Māori: ''Te Tai-o-Rēhua'', ) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abe ...

Species

* ''

Goweriana berniceae ''Goweriana'' is a monotypic genus of pinhead or dot snails that is endemic to Australia's Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea. Species * '' Goweriana berniceae'' Shea & Griffiths, 2010 – Bernice's pinhead snail Description The shells of ...

'' Shea & Griffiths, 2010 – Bernice's pinhead snail

Description

The shells of this very rare species are fragile and broken easily, making it difficult ti find entire adult shells to measure. The globose shell of a subadult had a diameter of 3.5 mm, with a flat spire, and was transparent golden-brown in colour. The sutures are impressed and the whorls rounded, with moderately spaced, bladed radial ribs. The aperture is roundly lunate with a closed umbilicus. The animal is unknown.

Distribution and habitat

The main area of occurrence of the snail is on the upper slopes of

Mount Gower Mount Gower (also known as Big Hill), is the highest mountain on Australia's subtropical Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea. With a height of above sea level, and a relatively flat summit plateau, it stands at the southern end of Lord Howe, jus ...

, living in

rain forest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainforest ...

plant litter Plant litter (also leaf litter, tree litter, soil litter, litterfall or duff) is dead plant material (such as leaves, bark, needles, twigs, and cladodes) that have fallen to the ground. This detritus or dead organic material and its constituent ...

References

* Punctidae Monotypic gastropod genera Gastropods described in 2010 Gastropods of Lord Howe Island {{Punctidae-stub