Cremnoconchus Explained

Cremnoconchus is a genus of small freshwater snails, gastropod mollusks in the otherwise marine family Littorinidae, the winkles or periwinkles.[1]

The generic name Cremnoconchus is from the Greek word κρημνός which means precipice and from the Ancient Greek word κόγχος which means shell.

This is the only freshwater genus within the Littorinidae; all other genera belonging to the family are marine.[2] [1] Molecular dating based on fossil records showed that Cremnoconchus separated from their last marine ancestor around 90 million years ago[3] and have since diversified within the Indian sub-continent. Based on this time of split, it has been postulated that either break-up of Gondwana or fluctuating sea levels might have facilitated their diversification. Based on the current distribution of the closest relatives of Cremnoconchus, a Gondwanan origin is highly likely.

The genus Cremnoconchus is endemic to the Western Ghats of India. All Cremnoconchus species live in spray zones of waterfalls i.e., not directly under the heavy flow of the water. Most species are restricted to one waterfall, earning them the title of point endemic. Very high footfall of tourists in the waterfalls of the Western ghats, accumulated waste, upstream pollution are all concerns for their habitat disturbance and degradation.[4] These factors along with their extremely limited distribution make them highly vulnerable to extinction.

Species

There were recognized 2-3 species by Strong et al. in 2008,[1] but Reid et al. described 6 new species of Cremnoconchus in 2013.

Species within the genus Cremnoconchus include:

Synonyms:

Notes and References

  1. Strong E. E., Gargominy O., Ponder W. F. & Bouchet P. (2008). "Global Diversity of Gastropods (Gastropoda; Mollusca) in Freshwater". Hydrobiologia 595: 149-166. hdl.handle.net .
  2. Williams . S. T. . Reid . D. G. . Littlewood . D. T. J. . 2003-07-01 . A molecular phylogeny of the Littorininae (Gastropoda: Littorinidae): unequal evolutionary rates, morphological parallelism, and biogeography of the Southern Ocean . Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution . 28 . 1 . 60–86 . 10.1016/S1055-7903(03)00038-1 . 1055-7903.
  3. Saha . Anwesha . Chakraborty . Sudeshna . Ravikanth . G. . Praveen Karanth . K. . Aravind . N. A. . 2022-09-01 . Endemicity and radiation in waterfalls of the Western Ghats: The genus Cremnoconchus (Gastropoda: Littorinidae) . Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution . 174 . 107547 . 10.1016/j.ympev.2022.107547 . 1055-7903.
  4. Aravind . N. A. . Sarma . Roshmi Rekha . Madhyastha . N. A. . 2016 . Conservation of Cremnoconchus Blanford 1869, an iconic freshwater gastropod genus from the Western Ghats, India . Current Science . 111 . 6 . 1097–1103 . 0011-3891.
  5. Reid D. G., Aravind N. A., & Madhyastha N. A. (2013). "A unique radiation of marine littorinid snails in the freshwater streams of the Western Ghats of India: the genus Cremnoconchus W.T. Blanford, 1869 (Gastropoda: Littorinidae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 167(1): 93-135. .
  6. Reid, David G. (2010). Cremnoconchus conicus Blanford, 1870. In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=446844 on 2011-09-05
  7. Reid, David G. (2010). Cremnoconchus syhadrensis (Blanford, 1863). In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=446845 on 2011-09-05

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