Radix natalensis
Radix natalensis is a species of freshwater snail, an aquatic gastropod mollusc in the family Lymnaeidae.
It is widely distributed in Africa. It is a major intermediate host for Fasciola gigantica in Africa.[5] Placement of this species in the genus Radix was confirmed by Correa et al. (2010).[6]
Distribution
Radix natalensis is a widespread species in Africa and occurs from northern Africa to southern Africa:[2]
- Northern Africa: Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Sudan.[2] There are also findings of distribution of Radix natalensis in Algeria 8-10,000 years ago.[2]
- Western Africa: Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria[2] and Senegal,[7]
- Eastern Africa: Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.[2]
- Central Africa: Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.[2]
- Southern Africa: Botswana, Namibia, South Africa[2] and Rhodesia.[8]
- Madagascar[9]
The type locality is in "pools in Port Natal", which today is Durban, South Africa.[3]
Description
Radix natalensis was described by German scientist and traveller Christian Ferdinand Friedrich Krauss in 1848.[3]
The shape of the shell is elongate ovoid.[10] The shell is colorless or light brown in color.[10] The height of the aperture covers about 3/4 of the shell height.[10] The lip of the aperture is thin and sharp.[10] The umbilicus is closed. The width of the shell is about 5.75-7 mm.[10] The height of the shell is 4.6-19.2 mm.[10]
The reproductive system and radula was described by Wright (1963) in detail.[10]
Ecology
Radix natalensis lives in permanent water bodies.[2] An estimated density of Radix natalensis in a natural habitat in Tanzania was 34 snails per m².[11] The snails lived mainly in the shallow water in depths of 0-4 cm, mainly between 20-30 cm from the shoreline.[11] They prefer plant detritus or bedrock as a substrate.[11]
Laboratory experiments have shown that some larger snails of Radix natalensis can survive on a wooden surface without water for up to 21 days.[8] Some smaller snails of Radix natalensis have survived desiccation on a soil surface up to 60 days on "black" soil.[8] Some smaller snails of Radix natalensis were able to survive for up to 90 days on soil among sedges (Cyperus) or in the "black" soil exposed to sun or in the soil with stones.[8]
Parasites of Radix natalensis include:
Predators of Radix natalensis include leeches Helobdella nilae and Alboglossiphonia conjugata.[17]
Snails of the non-indigenous species Marisa cornuarietis eliminated Radix natalensis and other two native snail species from a small pond in Tanzania in an experiment in 1982.[18]
Oil extract of the gum myrrh Commiphora myrrha has molluscicidal activity against Radix natalensis.[19][20]
Phylogeny
A cladogram shows the phylogenic relations of species in the genus Radix:[6]
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Radix sp. from Philippines
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Radix sp. from Canada and Radix sp. from Romania
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References
- ^ Oberholzer G. & Van Eeden J. A. (1967). "The freshwater molluscs of the Kruger National Park". Koedoe - African Protected Area Conservation and Science 10(1): 1-42. doi:10.4102/koedoe.v10i1.762, PDF.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Appleton C., Ghamizi M., Jørgensen A., Kristensen T. K., Stensgaard A-S. & Van Damme D. (2009). Lymnaea natalensis. In: IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.4. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 08 April 2011.
- ^ a b c (German) (Latin) Krauss F. (1848). Die Sudafrikanischen Mollusken. Ebnert & Seubert, Stuttgart, 140 pp, 6 plates. page 85, plate 5, figure 15.
- ^ (French) Bourguignat J. R. (1883). "Histoire malacogie de l'abyssinie". Annales Des Sciences Naturelles (Zoologie) (6)15: 1-162. 89, Plate 10, figs. 100-101.
- ^ a b Soliman M. F. M. (2008). "Epidemiological review of human and animal fascioliasis in Egypt". The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries 2(3): 182-189. abstract. PDF
- ^ a b c d Correa C. A., Escobar J. S., Durand P., Renaud F., David P., Jarne P., Pointier J.-P. & Hurtrez-Boussès S. (2010). "Bridging gaps in the molecular phylogeny of the Lymnaeidae (Gastropoda: Pulmonata), vectors of Fascioliasis". BMC Evolutionary Biology 10: 381. doi:10.1186/1471-2148-10-381.
- ^ (French) Sarr A., Kinzelbach R. & Diouf M. (2011, in press). "Diversité spécifique et écologie des mollusques continenatux de la basse vallée du Ferlo (Sénégal). [Specific diversity and ecology of continental molluscs from the Lower Ferlo Valley (Senegal)]". MalaCo 7: 8 pp. PDF.
- ^ a b c d Cridland C. C. (1967). "Resistance of Bulinus (Physopsis) globosus, Bulinus (Ph.) africanus, Biomphalaria pfeifferi and Lymnaea natalensis to experimental desiccation". Bulletin of the World Health Organization 36(3):507-513. PubMed, PDF.
- ^ Stothard J. R., Brémond P., Andriamaro L., Loxton N. J., Sellin B., Sellin E., & Rollinson D. (2006). "Molecular characterization of the freshwater snail Lymnaea natalensis (Gastropoda: Lymnaeidae) on Madagascar with an observation of an unusual polymorphism in ribosomal small subunit genes". Journal of Zoology 252(3): 303-315. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.2000.tb00625.x.
- ^ a b c d e f g Wright C. A. (1963). "The freshwater gastropod mollusca of Angola". Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) 10(8): 447-528. 16 plates. page 493.
- ^ a b c Utzinger J. & Tanner M. (2000). "Microhabitat preferences of Biomphalaria pfeifferi and Lymnaea natalensis in a natural and a man-made habitat in southeastern Tanzania". Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz 95(3): 287-294. PubMed, doi:10.1590/S0074-02762000000300002.
- ^ Dar Y., Djuikwo T. F., Vignoles P., Dreyfuss G. & Rondelaud D. (2010). "Radix natalensis (Gastropoda: Lymnaeidae), a potential intermediate host of Fasciola hepatica in Egypt". Parasite 17(3): 251-256. PubMed.
- ^ Dar Y., Vignoles P., Dreyfuss G. & Rondelaud D. (2010). "The development of rediae of Fasciola hepatica in Radix natalensis subjected twice to bimiracidial exposures". Journal of Helminthology 8: 1-5. PubMed, doi:10.1017/S0022149X10000453.
- ^ Dar Y. D., Rondelaud D. & Dreyfuss G. (2009). "Fasciola gigantica: larval productivity of sheep-derived miracidia in Radix natalensis and Galba truncatula". Journal of the Egyptian Society of Parasitology 39(3): 837-847. PubMed.
- ^ a b c Moema E. B., King P. H. & Baker C. (2008). "Cercariae developing in Lymnaea natalensis Krauss, 1848 collected in the vicinity of Pretoria, Gauteng Province, South Africa". The Onderstepoort journal of veterinary research 75(3): 215-223. PubMed.
- ^ Phiri A. M., Phiri I. K., Chota A. & Monrad J. (2007). "Trematode infections in freshwater snails and cattle from the Kafue wetlands of Zambia during a period of highest cattle-water contact". Journal of Helminthology 81(1): 85-92. PubMed, doi:10.1017/S0022149X07387786.
- ^ Abd-Allah K. F., Saleh M. H., El-Hamshary A. M., Negm-Eldin M. M., El-Fakahany A. F., Abdel-Tawab A. H., Abdel-Maboud A. I., Aly N. S. (2009). "Helobdella nilae and Alboglossiphonia conjugata leeches as biological agents for snails control". Journal of the Egyptian Society of Parasitology 39(1): 289-304. PubMed.
- ^ Nguma J. F., McCullough F. S. & Masha E. (1982). "Elimination of Biomphalaria pfeifferi, Bulinus tropicus and Lymnaea natalensis by the ampullarid snail, Marisa cornuarietis, in a man-made dam in northern Tanzania". Acta Tropica 39(1): 85-90. PubMed
- ^ Massoud A. M., El-Shazly A. M., Nagaty I. M., Morsy T. A. (2007). "Commiphora molmol extracts as plant molluscicide against Lymnaea natalensis". Journal of the Egyptian Society of Parasitology 37(2):437-448. PubMed.
- ^ Abd-Allah K. F., Negm-Eldin M. M., Saleh M. H., El-Hamshary A. M., El-Gozamy B. M., Aly N. S. (2009). "A study on biological control of six fresh water snails of medical and veterinary importance". Journal of the Egyptian Society of Parasitology 39(1): 121-139. PubMed.
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