Revision of the aperturally dentate Charopidae (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora) of southern Africa - genus Afrodonta s. lat., with description of five new genera, twelve new species and one new subspecies
Author
Herbert, David G.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:author:0C09EE45-6198-482E-857A-EF690C2A016F
Department of Natural Sciences, National Museum Wales, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF 10 3 NP, UK. Formerly at KwaZulu-Natal Museum, P. Bag 9070, Pietermaritzburg 3201, South Africa
phasianella@gmail.com
text
European Journal of Taxonomy
2020
2020-04-17
629
1
55
journal article
22877
10.5852/ejt.2020.629
3722aa65-b935-4294-ac20-0d1179da9015
3762280
ECEBD539-6E3E-45BE-A0CB-264DF3270CC0
Genus
Biomphalodonta
gen. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:
CE2A2B8F-D281-4E81-BF8D-5A705868D71A
Type
species
Biomphalodonta forticostata
gen. et sp. nov.
Diagnosis
Shell relatively large (max. diameter
2.7 mm
), biconcave with deeply sunken spire; umbilicus wide; whorls deep and tightly coiled, strongly rounded apically and basally, less so at periphery; last adult whorl not descendant. Protoconch with fine, close-set, regularly spaced axial riblets; riblets crisp and simple. Teleoconch with relatively coarse, widely spaced, lamellate axial riblets; intervals between riblets with numerous, fine, intermediary axial threads and even finer spiral threads. Aperture narrowly lunate; parietal dentition absent; palatal region with 1–2 axially aligned rows of denticles set back up to ½ whorl behind outer lip.
Etymology
From the Latin
bi-
: two, twice and the Greek
omphalos
(
Ομφαλός
): navel, and
donta
: a contraction of
Afrodonta
; with reference to the biconcave shell morphology. Gender feminine.
Remarks
Biomphalodonta
gen. nov.
is proposed for a single highly characteristic, range-restricted species. The axially costate protoconch is similar to that found in
Costulodonta
gen. nov.
, but the deep, relatively large, biconcave shell and coarse teleoconch sculpture set it apart from members of that genus. The shape of the shell and the iterodont palatal dentition resemble those of
Amatholedonta
gen. nov.
, but in that genus the protoconch is smooth and globose, and the teleoconch sculpture much finer.
A number of small, edentate charopid species currently referred to
Trachycystis
Pilsbry, 1893
are conchologically similar to
B. forticostata
gen. et sp. nov.
, except for their lack of apertural dentition. These include,
inter alia
,
Trachycystis bathycoele
(Melvill & Ponsonby, 1892)
and
T. bifoveata
Connolly, 1932
. Further study is needed in order to establish whether these also belong to
Biomphalodonta
gen. nov.
It may be that the presence/absence of apertural dentition is of limited phylogenetic significance and that the genus contains both dentate and edentate species.