Most recent article from Basteria
The stranger with no name: The non-indigenous murchisonellid from fresh and brackish water of northern Europe is a species new to science (Gastropoda: Murchisonellidae)
Authors: P.A.J. (Hannco) Bakker, Walter Renda, Jan Steger, Ton van Haaren, Angelo VannozziBasteria, 90 (1): 60-71
Published:
Abstract
In 2014 Warén & Könönen reported the presence of a dense population of an unnamed murchisonellid gastropod in brackish waters of the Baltic Sea of Finland. Already upon its initial record, it was considered a non-indigenous species, as (i) it had never been reported from European coasts despite good sampling coverage of its habitat, and (ii) due to the very high number of recorded individuals, which rendered it unlikely to represent an overlooked native species. Soon after its first finding, this gastropod was repeatedly found at several localities in the Netherlands and thus is now considered established. The identity of this species remained in a limbo since its discovery as its place of origin remained unknown and because there are still major gaps in our understanding of the taxonomy and ecology of Murchisonellidae. We herein verified the systematic placement of this species within the family Murchisonellidae and compared it with accepted species to unravel its identity. The initially tentative familial placement was confirmed by the presence of a jaw apparatus, a synapomorphy shared by members of the Murchisonellidae as highlighted by Warén (1995). We included this species under the genus Koloonella Laseron, 1959 due to the presence of few claw-shaped radular teeth and the presence of an adapical sinus in the shell growth lines. As the species did not reasonably match any of the known murchisonellid species, we herein describe it as Koloonella peregrina spec. nov. Comparison with similar species allowed to clarify the status of a few taxa, among which Murchisonella yuzan Lin & Shao, 2024, here recognised as a junior synonym of K. densistriata (Nomura, 1936) syn. nov. et comb. nov., and Eulimella folini P. Fischer, 1869, which should be considered a taxon inquirendum. Although – due to its non-indigenous status within its currently known range that spans the Gulf of Finland and the Netherlands – the native species range remains enigmatic, we suggest that Koloonella peregrina spec. nov. most likely originates from fresh or brackish-water coastal habitats of cold-temperate regions.