New Snail Species Found in Limestone Hills in Thailand
Posted on April 15, 2013
Researchers Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok and the Natural History Museum, London have discovered new snails in limestone hills in Thailand. The snails are from the brightly coloured carnivorous terrestrial snails family Streptaxidae. THe bright orange-colored Perrottetia dermapyrrhosa is pictured above and Perrottetia aquilonaria is pictured below.
The snails are described as a "One Hill One Species" - each of the snails inhabits one mountain range. The snails live in rock crevices and eat tinier snails, insect larvae and earthworms.
Dr. Somsak Panha, one of the authors of the study, said in a statement, "The three new Perrottetia species exhibit distinct morphological characteristics, which make for a great example for evolutionary studies in unstable environments. More than 50% of limestone ecosystems in this region have been or still are being destroyed. This astonishing case of biodiversity persistence gives a valuable reason to put effort in the conservation of this important world ecosystem."
The report was published here in ZooKeys.
Photo: Somsak Panha