Original paper

Critical review of the current taxonomic evaluation of the taxa of the Canariella hispidula complex from the Canary Island of Tenerife (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora: Canariellidae)

Groh, Klaus; Neiber, Marco T.

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Archiv für Molluskenkunde International Journal of Malacology Band 152 Heft 2 (2023), p. 217 - 237

45 references

published: Dec 13, 2023

DOI: 10.1127/arch.moll/152/217-237

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ArtNo. ESP190815202012, Price: 19.00 €

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Abstract

The more than 20 extant members of the genus Canariella Hesse, 1918 are all endemic to the Canary Islands. From the largest island of the Canarian Archipelago, Tenerife, only 5 species of the genus are currently recognised as valid species. This comparatively low number of species is surprising when compared with the diversity of other endemic genera of the Canary Islands and when compared with the diversity of Canariella on other large, high islands of this archipelago. We critically review the diversity of the Canariella hispidula (Lamarck, 1822) group on the basis of the available published data, as well as on the basis of materials in museum collections and the collections of the authors. Of the 9 previously described taxa belonging to this species complex we recognise 6 as valid species, namely C. hispidula, C. berthelotii (d’Orbigny, 1836), C. leprosa (Shuttleworth, 1852), C. lanosa (Mousson, 1872), C. subhispidula (Mousson, 1872), and C. everia (Mabille, 1882). The nominal taxon Helix (Gonostoma) beata Wollaston, 1878 is considered as a subspecies of C. berthelotii, while the nominal taxa Helix fortunata Shuttleworth, 1852 and Helicodonta salteri Gude, 1911 are considered synonyms of C. berthelotii and C. hispidula, respectively. The taxon from the southern and south-eastern parts of Tenerife previously considered to represent “C. bertheloti (Férussac, 1835)” is described as a new species, Canariella hartmuti sp. nov. The designation of a “lectotype” by Ibánez et al. (1995) for this unavailable name is withdrawn. The taxa C. leprosa and C. everia are placed in an undescribed subgenus, while the remaining taxa are placed in the nominate subgenus Canariella s. str.

Keywords

Canarian Archipelago • Canariella hartmuti sp. nov. • Helicoidea • Macaronesia • systematics • taxonomy