''Diplosolenodes occidentalis'' 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 air-breathing land slug, a 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 ...

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 ...

in the family

Veronicellidae The Veronicellidae, also known by their common name the leatherleaf slugs, are a family of pulmonate terrestrial slugs. The herbivorous molluscs occur mainly in the tropical and subtropical areas of America, Asia and Africa. They act as intermed ...

, the leatherleaf slugs.

Distribution

''Diplosolenodes occidentalis'' was originally discovered and described by Lansdown Guilding from the West Indian island of Saint Vincent. It seems likely that this species is native to most of the

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc betwe ...

. The distribution of ''Diplosolenodes occidentalis'' includes the

: *

Dominica Dominica ( or ; Kalinago: ; french: Dominique; Dominican Creole French: ), officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. It is geographically ...

– first record in 1884, Angas G. F. (1884). "On the terrestrial Mollusca of Dominica, collected during a recent visit to that island". ''Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London'' 1883: 594–597, figs. 1–3. then in 1892 Pilsbry H. A. (1892). "On a collection of land Mollusca from the Island of Dominica, West Indies". ''Transactions of the Connecticut Academy of Science'' 8
356
358. It has been introduced to the

Greater Antilles The Greater Antilles ( es, Grandes Antillas or Antillas Mayores; french: Grandes Antilles; ht, Gwo Zantiy; jam, Grieta hAntiliiz) is a grouping of the larger islands in the Caribbean Sea, including Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and ...

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

and northern

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

: *

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

Pérez A. M., Sotelo M., Arana I. & López A. (2008). "Diversidad de moluscos gasterópodos terrestres en la región del Pacífico de Nicaragua y sus preferencias de hábitat". ''

Rev. Biol. Trop. The Reverend is an honorific style most often placed before the names of Christian clergy and ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and church traditions. ''The Reverend'' is correctly ...

'' 56(1): 317–332,
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/ref> *

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

* In El Hatillo Miranda state –

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

It occurs in greenhouses in Logan County, Oklahoma.Branson B. A. (1980). "The Recent Gastropoda of Oklahoma, Part VIII. The Slug Families Limacidae, Arionidae, Veronicellidae, and Philomycidae". ''Proceedings of the Oklahoma Academy of Science.'' 60: 29–35
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This species has not yet become established in the wild in the US, but it is considered to represent a potentially serious threat as a

pest Pest or The Pest may refer to: Science and medicine * Pest (organism), an animal or plant deemed to be detrimental to humans or human concerns ** Weed, a plant considered undesirable * Infectious disease, an illness resulting from an infection ** ...

, an

invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...

which could negatively affect agriculture, natural ecosystems, human health or commerce. Therefore, it has been suggested that this species be given top national

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

significance in the USA.Cowie R. H., Dillon R. T., Robinson D. G. & Smith J. W. (2009). "Alien non-marine snails and slugs of priority quarantine importance in the United States: A preliminary risk assessment". ''American Malacological Bulletin'' 27: 113–132
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.

Description

This slug is most easily recognized by the black speckling on its

mantle A mantle is a piece of clothing, a type of cloak. Several other meanings are derived from that. Mantle may refer to: *Mantle (clothing), a cloak-like garment worn mainly by women as fashionable outerwear **Mantle (vesture), an Eastern Orthodox ve ...

or hyponota. The body length can reach up to 60 mm. Diplosolenodes occidentalis eggs

Ecology

This species may be found in undisturbed environments as well as in agricultural settings, where it may be regarded as a minor

References

This article incorporates CC-BY-3.0 text from the reference.Robinson D. G., Hovestadt A., Fields A. & Breure A. S. H. (July 2009). "The land Mollusca of Dominica (Lesser Antilles), with notes on some enigmatic or rare species". ''Zoologische Mededelingen'' 83 http://www.zoologischemededelingen.nl/83/nr03/a13

Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia The ''Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, formerly the Academ ...

'' 77: 157–184, Pl. 3–6
JSTOR
* Coto A. T. D. (1983). "Combate de la babosa ''Diplosolenodes occidentale'' (Guilding) (Soleolifera: Veronicellidae) con extractos de plantas". Tesis, Universidad de Costa Rica, San Jose. 53 pp. * Thomé J. W. (1989). "Annotated and illustrated preliminary list of the Veronicellidae (Mollusca[ Gastropoda) of The Antilles, and Central and North America". ''J. Med. & Appl. Malacol.'' 1: 11–28. * Thomé J. W. (1993). "Estado atual da sistemática dos veronicellidae (Mollusca; Gastropoda) americanos, con comentários sobre sua importáncia económica, ambiental e na saúde". ''Biociéncias'', Porto Alegre 1(1): 61–75. * Thomé J. W., dos Santos P. H. & Pedott L. (1997). "Annotated list of Veronicellidae from the collections of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., U.S.A. (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Soleolifera)". ''Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington'' 110: 520–536, figs 1–16. page 522. * Julieta Fernandez de V. (1982). "Contribucion al Conocimiento de las Babosas y Sietecueros (Mollusca: Gastropoda) Que Causan Daños a la Agricultura en Venezuela". ''Rev. Fac. Agron.'' (Maracay), XII(3–4). 353–386. http://avepagro.org.ve/fagro/v12_34/v124m010.html – listed as ''Latipes pterocaulis'' in Venezuela. {{DEFAULTSORT:Diplosolenodes Occidentalis Veronicellidae Gastropods described in 1825

Distribution

Description

Ecology

References

Further reading