Land Snails

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Oxyloma groenlandicum (Möller, 1841)

Family:Succineidae
Common name: Ruddy Ambersnail

Identification
Width: up to 4 mm
Height: 7-9 mm, up to 11 mm
Whorls: 2.5-3

Oxyloma groenlandicum has a very thin, smallish, elongate-ovate shell with a narrow aperture. The light yellow to tan shell has a reddish upper apex and sometimes white streaks throughout and/or dark streaks towards the last whorl. The whorls are very convex and separated by deep sutures. The body is dark brown with gray stripes descending (Pilsbry, 1948; Burch, 1962).

Dissection may be necessary to identify succineid species. O. groenlandicum has a penis with an appendix on its end, a very twisted epiphallus, and a thin penial sheath enclosing all.  Inside the penis are a pilaster and anterior ridges. The bursa copulatrix duct is thick. Dark flecks mark much of genitalia (Pilsbry, 1948; Grimm et al., 2009).

Note that Succineidae show a great deal of intraspecific variation in size and proportions, both within and between sites (Pilsbry, 1948).

Ecology
The snail is found in wet parts of unglaciated areas and intermontane valleys (Harris and Hubricht, 1982). Habitats include low plains with tidal floods, grasslands, and the slopes behind waterfalls (Pilsbry, 1948; Hubricht, 1985).

Little is known about the ecology of Oxyloma groenlandicum. Its congener, O. retusa,lays eggs in the summer, is dormant during the winter, and aestivates (forms a diaphragm over its shell opening) during dry conditions. The snail consumes plant material, fungi, algae, and pollen (Lannoo and Bovbjerg, 1985; Örstan, 2006).

Taxonomy
Synonyms include Succinea groenlandica and S. pfeifferi groenlandica. It is possible that O. groenlandicum will be found a subspecies of the European genus Oxyloma elegans (Bank et al.,2007).

Distribution
Internationally, this species has been found in Iceland, Greenland, and across Canada. The only Northeast US records are for New York (Madison Co.) and Massachusetts (Barnstable Co).

Conservation
NatureServe Global Rank: not ranked/under review

Megan Paustian 10/2017

Range Map (Click to Enlarge)