•  
  •  
 

Document Type

Research

Keywords

Oxyloma retusa; Succineidae; color polymorphism; distribution; dispersion; behavioral ecology

Abstract

Oxyloma retusa is a land snail found only along moist margins of freshwater wetlands and lakes. This study quantifies the dispersal pattern of O. retusa along permanent and temporary wetlands and considers the environmental factors to which this snail responds. On a lake shore, snail density peaked in the second or third meter from the water's edge but snails were present in decreasing numbers up to 7 meters inland. In field experiments, marked snails, initially distributed evenly along a shore transect, assumed a similar dispersion pattern within 72 hours. Two color morphs had overlapping but zonal dispersions, the amber morph farther inland than the dark. In drying ponds, snails followed the retreating shoreline. In reflooding of such ponds snails responded by crawling with the water's leading edge or ascending emergent vegetation. It is clear that O. retusa actively selects a precise microhabitat. This habitat selection appears dependent on a combination of physical and biotic factors acting separately and in combination.

Publication Date

March 1985

Journal Title

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

Volume

92

Issue

2

First Page

67

Last Page

69

Copyright

©1985 Iowa Academy of Science, Inc.

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

Share

COinS
 
 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.