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Species Composition and Geographic Distribution of Virginia's Freshwater Gastropod Fauna: A Review Using Historical Records
American Malacological Bulletin
  • Timothy W. Stewart, Iowa State University
  • Robert T. Dillon, Jr., College of Charleston
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
1-1-2004
Abstract

Survey data from electronic databases and the literature were used to summarize knowledge of the composition and geographic distribution of Virginia's freshwater gastropod fauna. After excluding records likely based on misidentifications, we concluded that 53 species of freshwater gastropods occur in Virginia now or historically. A map and/or narrative description of statewide distribution was produced for each species. Several species appeared to be restricted to a few sites and highly endangered, including the hydrobiids Fontigens bottimeri, Fontigens morrisoni, Holsingeria unthankensis, and Holsingeria sp. 1. Absence of recent records for the hydrobiid Sompatogyrus virginicus, the pomatiopsid Pomatiopsis cincinnatiensis, the pleurocerids Elimia archnoidea and Pleurocera gradata, and the lymnaeid Stagnicola neopalustris indicated these species might also be imperiled if not already extirpated from Virginia. Although we have a good understanding of distributions of Fontigens spp., Holdingeria spp., and of several river-dwelling pleurocerids in southwest Virginia, other species and geographic regions (e. g., eastern shore and Big Sandy River drainage) are undersurveyed. We provide data to assist in designing surveys to fill these knowledge gaps and to monitor temporal changes in species' distributions. Comparisons of historic and future data from field surveys will facilitate protection and management of endangered species by providing evidence of restricted or shrinking geographic ranges.

Comments

This article is from American Malacological Bulletin 19 (2004): 79. Posted with permission.

Rights
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. In Copyright. Digitized with the permission of the rights holder
Copyright Owner
American Malacological Union
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Citation Information
Timothy W. Stewart and Robert T. Dillon. "Species Composition and Geographic Distribution of Virginia's Freshwater Gastropod Fauna: A Review Using Historical Records" American Malacological Bulletin Vol. 19 Iss. 1/2 (2004) p. 79 - 91
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/timothy_stewart/5/