Virginia Land Snails

Photo(s): Views of Fumonelix christyi’s sturdy shell with covered umbilicus, by Dan Dourson ©.

Click photo(s) to enlarge.

Fumonelix christyi (Bland, 1860)

Family: Polygyridae
Common name: Glossy Covert

Identification
Width: 8.5-10.0 mm
Height: 4.0-5.0 mm tall
Whorls: 4.5

The flattened heliciform shell of Fumonelix christyi is small and sturdy. It has a long parietal tooth, in a widely reflected aperture. The umbilicus is covered. The shell surface is glossy and lacks spiral lines. The animal is dark gray.

Ecology
Fumonelix christyi is most commonly found in leaf litter. It prefers oak woodland (Hubricht, 1985).

Taxonomy
Synonyms for F. christyi include Helix christyi, Mesodon christyi, and Polygyra christyi.

Distribution
This snail is native to the southeastern Appalachian Mountains, reported from only a handful of counties from Virginia to Georgia. It is listed as an imperiled species in Tennessee, and as critically imperiled in Virginia. It is reported only from Patrick County (Hubricht, 1985), in the mountainous southwestern part of the state, though we have been unable to verify this with museum records.

NatureServe Global Rank: G3
NatureServe State Rank: S1
Virginia’s wildlife action plan: Tier III

 

Meegan Winslow, Ken Hotopp 8/2012