Golden pebblesnail
The golden pebblesnail, scientific name Somatogyrus aureus, is a species of minute freshwater snails with an operculum, aquatic gastropod molluscs or micromolluscs in the family Lithoglyphidae. This species is endemic to Alabama and Tennessee in the United States.[2] Its natural habitat is the Tennessee River system, with the type locality being given as the Holston River.
| Golden pebblesnail | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Order: | Neotaenioglossa |
| Family: | Lithoglyphidae |
| Genus: | Somatogyrus |
| Species: | S. aureus |
| Binomial name | |
| Somatogyrus aureus Tryon, 1865 | |
The taxonomic status of S. aureus is unclear, as it is morphologically similar to other species. However, if it is a valid species, it would be assessed as Critically Endangered (possibly extinct). Although the IUCN officially categorises the species as Data Deficient, it also considers it as Possibly extinct, as it has not been definitively recorded alive since the river was impounded in 1936.[1] A purported finding from Marion County, Tennessee in 1997[3] has yet to be confirmed.
References
- Cordeiro, J. & Perez, K. (2011). "Somatogyrus aureus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T20351A9189915. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-2.RLTS.T20351A9189915.en. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
- "Somatogyrus aureus". NatureServe Explorer An online encyclopedia of life. 7.1. NatureServe. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- Shelton, D.N. 1997. Observations on the life history of the Alabama pearl shell, Margaritifera marrianae R. I. Johnson, 1983. Conservation and Management of Freshwater Mussels II: initiatives for the future. In: Cummings, K.S, Buchanan, A.C., Mayer, C.A. and Naimo, T.J. (eds), Proceedings of a UMRCC Symposium, pp. 26-29. Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Rock Island, Illinois. St. Louis, Missouri