''Hirtudiscus boyacensis'' is a species of

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 ...

in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

of '' Scolodontinae'' of 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 ...

Scolodontidae Scolodontidae is a taxonomic family of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or ...

'', first described by Bernhard Hausdorf in 2003. __NOTOC__

Etymology and habitat

''Hirtudiscus boyacensis'' has been named after the

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Boyacá where the species has been found. The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...

was discovered in a

dry forest Dry or dryness most often refers to: * Lack of rainfall, which may refer to **Arid regions **Drought * Dry or dry area, relating to legal prohibition of selling, serving, or imbibing alcoholic beverages * Dry humor, deadpan * Dryness (medical) ...

at altitude between

Villa de Leyva Villa de Leyva, also called Villa de Leiva, is a touristic colonial town and municipality, in the Ricaurte Province, part of the Boyacá Department of Colombia. The town is a Colombian National Heritage Town and is on the tentative list for UNES ...

and

Gachantivá Gachantivá is a town and municipality in the Ricaurte Province, part of the Colombian department of Boyacá. Gachantivá is located at altitudes ranging from to on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense and borders Villa de Leyva in the south, Santa So ...

. Paratypes were found at towards

Arcabuco Arcabuco is a town and municipality in the Ricaurte Province, part of the Colombian Department of Boyacá. Arcabuco is situated on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense with the urban centre at an altitude of . The municipality borders Moniquirá and Gá ...

in an oak forest, in

Moniquirá Moniquirá is a town and Municipalities of Colombia, municipality in Boyacá Department, Colombia, part of the subregion of the Ricaurte Province. It is known for its "bocadillos" and "panelitas de leche" (both little sweet cakes). Moniquirá borde ...

at , and and in Barbosa at .Hausdorf, 2003, p.184

Description

The

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines *Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts *Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies, ...

of ''Hirtudiscus boyacensis'' is described by Hausdorf; a disc-like shell with convex

whorls A whorl ( or ) is an individual circle, oval, volution or equivalent in a whorled pattern, which consists of a spiral or multiple concentric objects (including circles, ovals and arcs). Whorls in nature File:Photograph and axial plane floral d ...

, a

protoconch A protoconch (meaning first or earliest or original shell) is an embryonic or larval shell which occurs in some classes of molluscs, e.g., the initial chamber of an ammonite or the larval shell of a gastropod. In older texts it is also called ...

with more or less distinct spiral striae and dense growth striae and hairs. The shell diameter is 3.5-5.2 mm. The specimens from the surroundings of Barbosa and Moniquira differ from those from near Villa de Leyva in the smaller shell with more strongly arched whorls, a weaker spiral sculpture on the protoconch and an umbilicus that is on average narrower.Hausdorf, 2003, p.185

References

Bibliography

* {{cbignore, bot=medic Scolodontidae Altiplano Cundiboyacense Boyacensis Endemic fauna of Colombia Invertebrates of Colombia Molluscs of South America Gastropods described in 2003