Ecologica Montenegrina 10: 11-13 (2017) This journal is available online at: www.biotaxa.org/em

https://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:61995C31-A68D-4D86-8A51-D98C27C490EA

New stygobiont snail from groundwater of Morocco (Gastropoda: Moitessieriidae)

MOHAMED GHAMIZI* & MOKHTAR BOULAL

Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle de Marrakech, université Cadi Ayyad, Faculté des Sciences LHEA URA CNRST, BP 2390 Marrakech, Morocco. *Corresponding Author, E-mail: [email protected]

Received: 10 December 2016 │ Accepted by V. Pešić: 20 January 2017 │ Published online: 25 January 2017.

A new taxa of freshwater snails of the genus Iglica Wagner 1927 from Morocco is presented. A new species is described, “Iglica” soussensis n. sp., which lives in groundwater of one well of the Souss plain in the south of the High Atlas, Morocco. The only specimen collected has a shell close to the species namely Iglica tellinii (Pollonera 1886), from Italy. The new species are characterized by an elliptic aperture parallel to columella and disjunct coiling of the last whorl. Our new species will be a second taxa belonging to the genus Iglica in Morocco. The first one is Iglica seyadi Backhyus & Boeters 1974, collected in Guelmim plain in the south part of our collecting area. Conchiological features are close to the high spired Iglica species but anatomical characters are needed to clearly assignated it to the genus Iglica. Groundwater Hydrobiid mollusks recorded from Morocco until now belong to the following genera: Heideella Backhyus & Boeters 1974, Atebbania Ghamizi, Bodon & Giusti 1999 and Iglica Wagner 1927 (Backhyus & Boeters 1974; Brown 1994; Ghamizi et al. 1999; Bodon et al. 1999). Kristensen (1985) reported from Morocco the genera Hadziella Kuščer, 1932, Horatia Bourguignat 1887 and Belgrandia Bourguignat, 1870 without description or taxonomical revision. Other Hydrobiid genera were reported as nomina nuda in the assessment of the threatened freshwater snails of the North Africa conducted by IUCN (Van Damme et al. 2010). Iglica seyadi Backhyus & Boeters 1974 is the only hydrobiid reported from Morocco as a probably stygobiont snail (Backhyus & Boeters 1974; Brown 1994). Its assignation to the genus Iglica needs more investigations (Brown 1994; Bodon et al. 1999). We present the probably second record of this genus by describing a new species from Morocco but only on conchiological features. The phreatobiological net was used to collect snails from wells (Ghamizi et al. 1999; Bodon et al. 1999). Only one specimen represented by empty shell (leg. Boulal, 1.5.1986) collected in the wells of Ait Msia village in the Souss plain, area of Agadir, Morocco (UTM MP 55). The specimen is scanned and deposited at the National Museum of Natural History of Paris as holotype of the new species ‘Iglica’ soussensis n. sp. (Number depot: MNHN 27092). Diagnose of the shell shape according Hershler and Ponder (1998).

Ecologica Montenegrina, 10, 2017, 11-13

NEW STYGOBIONT SNAIL FROM GROUNDWATER OF MOROCCO

Systematics

Family Moitessieriidae Bourguignat, 1863

Genus Iglica Wagner 1927 Type species: Iglica gratulabunda (Wagner 1910)

‘Iglica’ soussensis n. sp. (Fig. 1)

Holotype: 2.1 mm height, 0.4 mm width, MNHN 27092.

Type locality: Ait Msia village in the Souss plain, area of Agadir, Morocco (UTM MP 55).

Etymology: Named after the Souss plain, area of the type locality.

Description: A small and cylindrically shaped shell, turriform, high-spired with 6.5 whorls separated by broad and deep sutures; Apex acuminate, in bud; Open umbilicus with disjunct coiling of the last whorl. Elliptical and complete peristome with simple outer lip; Aperture separated from body whorl by a broad and large groove. The plane of the aperture is parallel to the ventral surface of the shell. Measurements: shell height: 2.1 mm; shell width: 0.4 mm; aperture height: 0.4 mm; aperture width: 0.16 mm. Anatomy and operculum unknown.

Figure 1. ‘Iglica’ soussensis n.sp. Holotype. (Scale bar = 0.5 mm)

Distribution: Only known from type locality.

Discussion The only taxa of Iglica reported from Morocco as endemic species, named Iglica seyadi Backhuys & Boeters 1974, is collected in the Seyad River, south of Guelmim and described only by characters of the shell (Backhuys & Boeters 1974: p. 56, pl. 2, fig. 5). Its assignation to the genus Iglica is doubtful and the shell shape is close to the genus Heideella Backhuys & Boeters 1974, from the same area (Bodon et al. 1999). Our specimen differs clearly by the shell shape which is closely comparable to that of “Iglica” tellinii (Pollonera 1886) (Giusti & Pezzoli 1980: Fig. 17 A) having 3 mm in shell height but greater than our specimen (2.1 mm). The status of I. tellini remains uncertain in relation to the lack of data on the operculum and anatomy

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GHAMIZI & BOULAL of the animal. The shell of “Iglica” giustii from Italy described by Bodon and Giovannelli (1994) is greatest (mean shell height: 4.24 mm). The plate for taxa attribuited to the Iglica genus illustrated by Niero and Pezzoli (2016, Fig.1M for I. giustii and Fig.1.AC for I.tellini) seems that this two species have mainly the same shape but quite great than our specimen which also figured in this plate as nomen nudum species (Niero and Pezzoli, 2016, Fig.1AB). Actual distribution of Iglica: various localities in Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Hercegovina (Kabat & Hershler 1993). No taxa of this genus are reported from Iberian Peninsulas or North Africa regions. Iglica has not yet been redefined (Boeters et al. 2013).The attribution of our specimen to the genus Iglica is speculative, also for the same reasons of “Iglica” tellinii (lack of data on anatomy) and regarding its disjunct biogeographical distribution, for that we have kept the genus name under two quotation marks. Nevertheless, the shape of the shell, small height, high-spired, disjunct coiling of the last whorl, with elliptic aperture opening parallel to the columella are new features among all stygobiont gastropod described from Morocco until now and among species belonging to the genus Bythiospeum Bourguignat 1882 in southwest palearctic region. Stygobiont species is considered for all the mollusks fauna associated with subterranean continental waters (Bole & Velkovrh 1986). Our specimen is collected from a phreatic water of the well.

Status: Critically Endangered B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii) ver 3.1 (Ghamizi 2010; Van Damme et al. 2010).

References

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