Six new subterranean freshwater gastropod species from northern Albania and some new records from Albania and Kosovo (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Moitessieriidae and Hydrobiidae)
Author
Grego, Jozef
Author
Gloeer, Peter
Author
Eross, Zoltan Peter
Author
Feher, Zoltan
text
Subterranean Biology
2017
23
85
107
http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/subtbiol.23.14930
journal article
http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/subtbiol.23.14930
1314-2615-23-85
EED0F00CA1E5459C9843BEB5CC9A47C7
Plagigeyeria
zetaprotogona
Schuett
, 1960
Figs 21-28
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona
Schuett
, 1960: 148-149, fig. 3 (Zetaquelle bei Tunjevo)
Plagigeyeria zetadidyma
Schuett
, 1960: 149-150, fig. 4 (Zetaquelle bei Tunjevo).
Plagigeyeria zetatridyma
Schuett
, 1960: 150, fig. 5 (Zetaquelle bei Tunjevo)
Plagigeyeria montenigrina
Bole, 1961b: 207, fig. 3 (Obodska
pecina
bei Rijeka
Crnojevica
)
?
Plagigeyeria pageti
Schuett
, 1961: 134-136, fig. 3 (Velika Spilja bei Risan)
?
Plagigeyeria pageti minor
Schuett
, 1961: 136, fig. 3 (Velika Spilja bei Risan)
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona vitoja
Reischuetz
&
Reischuetz
, 2008: 143, fig. 1 (
Oestliche
Quelle in Vitoja am Ufer des Skadarsko Jezero):
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona zetaprotogona
-
Schuett
1972
: 115, fig.11.
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona zetadidima
-
Schuett
1972
: 115, figs 12-13.
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona zetatridyma
-
Schuett
1972
: 116, figs 14-16.
?
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona pageti
-
Schuett
1972
: 116, figs 17-20.
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona montenigrina
-
Schuett
1972
: 116, fig.10.
Plagigeyeria montenegrina
(sic!) -
Radoman 1983
: 107-108, figs 122-124.
Plagigeyeria montenigrina
-
Bank 2013
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona
-
Bank 2013
?
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona pageti
-
Bank 2013
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona vitoja
-
Bank 2013
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona zetadidyma
-
Bank 2013
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona zetatridyma
-
Bank 2013
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona
-
Gloeer
et al. 2015
: 74, figs 7-8.
Material.
Albania,
Malesia
district,
Bajze
, Syri i Sheganit Spring by the
Shkoder
Lake, 10 m,
42.2722°N
;
19.3963°E
(Fig. 2F); leg.
Eross
,
Feher
, Grego, Szekeres, 27.06.2016 (coll. Grego, HNHM 100385, NHMW 111661) -
Shkoder
district, Rrash, Burimi te Vrakut (Kroi i Vrakes, Vrak Spring), 60 m,
42.1457°N
;
19.5452°E
; leg.
Eross
,
Feher
, Grego, Szekeres, 28.06.2016 (coll. Grego) -
Malesia
district,
Shpelle
e Dverptes (Dverpte Cave), 4.5 km S of
Tamare
, 200 m,
42.4262°N
;
19.5272°E
;
Eross
,
Feher
, Grego, Szekeres, 27.06.2016 (coll. Grego) (Fig. 2G).
Remarks.
The taxonomic identity of this species is not clear.
Schuett
(1972)
associated five subspecies with it, while
Radoman (1983)
didn't
even mention this name is his monograph. In
Schuett's
(1972)
opinion the typical
montenigrina
can be considered the morph from which the others are derived.
Bank (2013)
mostly follows
Schuett's
(1972)
view, except that treating
montenigrina
a distinct species. The source of uncertainty is that, unlike in other subterranean (and epigean) truncatelloid snails, striking morphological differences could be observed within the same museum lots (found at the same localities), e.g. three different morphs were described from the Zeta Spring in Tunjevo.
Schuett
(1972)
found that two or three morphotypes can often be detected in the same location. Based on the biological species concept, one could argue that co-existence of these morphs is a strong argument against their distinction at the subspecies level. However, it is also conceivable that the museum lots studied by
Schuett
(1972)
represent thanatocoenoses only, i.e. they were washed together from various, geographically isolated subpopulations, and therefore the co-existence of the various morphs is just artifactual. This makes it questionable how many species and subspecies actually exist, and, if there is more than one species, how large is the geographic range of
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona
s. str.
We have found three populations that seem to belong to this taxon (or taxon group), which are the first records thereof from Albania. The Syri i Sheganit population is conchologically very similar to that of the Vitoja Spring (Podgorica, Montenegro, type locality of
P. z. vitoja
), and the other two populations further expand the known range of morphological heterogeneity. The specimens from Vrak spring have a more robust shape and could represent a new subspecies, while the single broken shell and few fragments from Shpelle Dverptes are more elongate. Until more material become available we will treat it as
Plagigeyeria cf. zetaprotogona
.
Figures 21-28. 21-26
Plagigeyeria zetaprotogona
: 21-22 Montenegro, Vitoja Spring 23-24 Albania,
Bajze
, Syri i Sheganit Spring 25-26 Albania, Rraps, Vrak Spring;
Plagigeyeria cf. zetaprotogona
: 27-28 Albania, Dverpte Cave. (photos: Peter
Gloeer
, Jozef Grego).