''Triboniophorus'' sp. nov. 'Kaputar', also known as ''Triboniophorus''
aff. ''Species affinis'' (commonly abbreviated to: ''sp.'', ''aff.'', or ''affin.'') is taxonomic terminology in zoology and botany. In open nomenclature it indicates that available material or evidence suggests that the proposed species is related to, h ...
''graeffei'', or the Mount Kaputar pink slug, is a
species of giant
air-breathing land slug
Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced shell, or only a smal ...
with a distinctive
hot pink hue. These slugs are found on
Mount Kaputar in
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 ...
. Taxonomists have confirmed that these slugs are not
conspecific with the better-known "red triangle slug", ''
Triboniophorus graeffei
The red triangle slug (''Triboniophorus graeffei'') is a species of large air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Athoracophoridae, the leaf-veined slugs.
This large (up to ), often colorful and striki ...
''.
Distribution and habitat
The slugs have only been found at the top of
Mount Kaputar, an inland mountain near
Narrabri in northern
New South Wales within
Mount Kaputar National Park, at an altitude around surrounded by
snow gum trees.
They have been observed to stay within this area,
which is estimated to be .
Most of the top of the mountain is
designated wilderness.
Although the mountain is surrounded by dry plains, it receives rainfall and snow, and its temperature is cooler than the plains.
Thus it forms an isolated
ecozone An Ecozone may refer to:
* Ecozone (Canada), one of 15 first-level ecological land classifications in Canada
* Biogeographic realm, the broadest biogeographic division of Earth's land surface (referred to as ''ecozone'' by BBC)
* Biome, a large c ...
, or
sky island; such sky islands are known for
unique indigenous fauna and flora.
Around 90% of the total population of the species are thought to have perished in the
2019 Australian bushfires
Nineteen or 19 may refer to:
* 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20
* one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019
Films
* ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film
* ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film
Music ...
.
Life
The slugs can be seen by the hundreds on cool, wet, misty mornings.
During the day, they hide in the
plant litter at the base of the trees.
At night, they come out and climb the tree to eat
algae
Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...
and
moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
es growing on the
tree trunk.
The slugs climb down the tree trunk in the early morning to hide and repeat the cycle.
In the ecosystem, the slugs break down the plant litter into nutrient-rich soil to promote plant growth.
They also serve as food for birds and other animals.
Description
The slugs are
fluorescent pink in color and up to about in length.
In an
Australian Broadcasting Corporation interview,
New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service Ranger Michael Murphy described the color: "as bright pink as you can imagine, that's how pink they are".
Origins
''Triboniophorus'' sp. nov. 'Kaputar' is related but not identical to ''
Triboniophorus graeffei
The red triangle slug (''Triboniophorus graeffei'') is a species of large air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Athoracophoridae, the leaf-veined slugs.
This large (up to ), often colorful and striki ...
'', the red triangle slug. Taxonomists have confirmed the fluorescent pink species' distinction from the red triangle slug.
The slug has relatives in
New Guinea,
New Caledonia
)
, anthem = ""
, image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
, map_alt = Location of New Caledonia
, map_caption = Location of New Caledonia
, mapsize = 290px
, subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...
, New Zealand, and eastern Africa.
These land masses once connected with Australia as the
Gondwanaland supercontinent.
A volcanic eruption at Mount Kaputar 17 million years ago created a high-altitude area where these slugs and other invertebrates and plants have lived isolated for millions of years after the surrounding rainforests of eastern Australia vanished due to climate change.
References
Further reading
*
{{taxonbar, from=Q15511609
Athoracophoridae
Undescribed gastropod species