Partula (gastropod)

Partula is a genus of air-breathing tropical land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Partulidae.^[2][3]

Many species of Partula are known under general common name "Polynesian Tree Snail" or as "Moorean Viviparous Tree Snail".^[4]

Partulids are spread over 5,000 square miles (13,000 km²) of Pacific Ocean islands, from the Society Islands to Palau.

Once used as decorative items in Polynesian ceremonial wear and jewelry, these small snails (averaging about one-half to three-quarters of an inch in length) gained the attention of science when Dr. Henry Crampton (along with Yoshio Kondo) spent 50 years studying and cataloging partulids, detailing their remarkable array of morphological elements, ecological niches and behavioral aspects that illustrate adaptive radiation.^[5]

Contents 1 Decline 2 Species 3 Ecology 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External links

Decline

What happened to the partulids of the island of Tahiti is a demonstration of the possible deleterious effects of attempted biological control. After an infestation of the introduced giant African land snails (Achatina spp.), the carnivorous Florida rosy wolfsnail (Euglandina rosea) was introduced into Tahiti in an attempt to combat the African species.

The wolfsnail chose instead to hunt and eat members of the nearly 76 species of Partula that were endemic to Tahiti, devouring all but about 5 species in a decade. Several scientists recognized what was going on, and were able to save several species prior to their becoming extinct.

Today, the Zoological Society of London runs the Partula Programme Consortium which maintains a captive breeding program in the United Kingdom, France and the United States.

The 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species contains 15 critically endangered, 11 extinct in the wild and 48 extinct Partula species.^[6] The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species version 2009.2 contains 13 critically endangered, 11 extinct in the wild and 51 extinct Partula species.^[7]

Species

Species within the genus Partula include:

Partula affinis † Partula approximata † Partula arguta † Partula atilis † Partula aurantia † Partula auriculata † Partula bilineata † Partula callifera † Partula calypso Partula candida † Partula castanea † Partula cedista † Partula citrina † Partula clara

Partula compacta † Partula crassilabris † Partula cuneata † Partula cytherea † Partula dentifera Partula dolichostoma † Partula dolorosa † Partula emersoni Partula eremita † Partula exigua † Partula faba Partula filosa Partula formosa † Partula fusea † Partula garretti

Partula gibba Partula guamensis Partula hebe Partula hyalina Partula imperforata † Partula labrusca † Partula langfordi Partula leptochila † Partula leucothoe Partula levilineata † Partula levistriata † Partula lutea † Partula martensiana Partula microstoma †

Partula mirabilis Partula mooreana Partula nodosa Partula otaheitana Partula planilabrum † Partula producta † Partula protea † Partula protracta † Partula radiata † Partula radiolata Partula raiatensis † Partula remota † Partula robusta † Partula rosea Partula rustica †

Partula sagitta † Partula salifana † Partula salifera † Partula suturalis Partula taeniata Partula thalia † Partula thetis Partula tohiveana Partula tristis Partula turgida † Partula umbilicata † Partula varia Partula variabilis † Partula vittata †

A cladogram showing phylogenic relations of Partula:^[8]

Partulidae	Partula Samoana Eua

Ecology

Partula species on Tahiti were usually found on the undersides of the leaves of Caladium and plantain, although in some valleys they were frequently found on Dracaena and turmeric.^[9]

References

This article incorporates public domain text from the reference ^[9].

Further reading

• Crampton H. E. (1916). Studies on the variation, distribution and evolution of the genus Partula. The species inhabiting Tahiti. Carnegie Institution of Washington, 228: 1-311.
• Crampton H. E. (1925). Studies on the variation, distribution and evolution of the genus Partula. The species of the Mariana Islands, Guam and Saipan. Carnegie Institution of Washington, 228a: 1-116.
• Crampton H. E. (1932). Studies on the variation, distribution and evolution of the genus Partula. The species inhabiting Moorea. Carnegie Institution of Washington, 410: 1-335.
• Lee T., Burch J. B., Jung Y., Coote T., Pearce-Kelly P., Ó Foighil D. (2007). "Tahitian tree snail mitochondrial clades survived recent mass-extirpation". Current Biology 17(13): R502-R503. PubMed, doi:10.1016/j.cub.2007.05.006.

External links

• Partula at National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website.