''Tantulum elegans'' 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 freshwater slug, an aquatic shell-less

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 ...

within the clade Acochlidiacea. This species has no shell. The maximum recorded length is 2 mm.Welch J. J. (2010). "The "Island Rule" and Deep-Sea Gastropods: Re-Examining the Evidence". '' PLoS ONE'' 5(1): e8776. . ''Tantulum elegans'' is the only species in the genus ''Tantulum'', and that is in turn the only genus in the family Tantulidae.Strong E. E., Gargominy O., Ponder W. F. & Bouchet P. (2008). "Global Diversity of Gastropods (Gastropoda; Mollusca) in Freshwater". ''

Hydrobiologia ''Hydrobiologia'', ''The International Journal of Aquatic Sciences'', is a peer-reviewed scientific journal publishing 21 issues per year, for a total of well over 4000 pages per year. ''Hydrobiologia'' publishes original research, reviews and opi ...

'' 595: 149-166. .

Taxonomy

In 2005, Tantulidae was classified as the only family within the superfamily

Hedylopsoidea Hedylopsoidea was defined as a taxonomic superfamily of sea slugs, mostly marine gastropod mollusks within the informal group Opisthobranchia according to the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi (2005). Schrödl & Neusser (2010)Schrödl M. & Neusser ...

in the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi. According to Schrödl & Neusser (2010)Schrödl M. & Neusser T. P. (2010). "Towards a phylogeny and evolution of Acochlidia (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia)". ''

Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society The ''Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering zoology published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Linnean Society. The editor-in-chief is Maarten Christenhusz (Linnean Society). ...

'' 158: 124-154. . Tantulidae is in the clade Hedylopsacea.

Distribution

This species occurs in the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

island of Saint Vincent. It was collected at an altitude of 411.5 m.

Ecology

''Tantulum elegans'' are sequential

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrate ...

s.Neusser T. P. & Schrödl M. (2007). "''Tantulum elegans'' reloaded: a computer-based 3D-visualization of the anatomy of a Caribbean freshwater acochlidian gastropod". ''Invertebrate Biology'' 126(1): 18-39. .

References

External links

* http://www.malacolog.org/search.php?mode=details&waspid=5103 {{Taxonbar, from=Q7683895 Tantulidae Gastropods described in 1979