Abbottella
Abbottella is a genus of operculate land snails, terrestrial gastropod mollusks gastropod in the family Pomatiidae.
The generic name Abbottella is in honor of Dr. Isabella Abbott.
Distribution
The distribution of Abbottella includes Cuba and Hispaniola. Abbottella species are a highly endemic group of land snails living in Hispaniola with a single species in eastern Cuba. Most are known chiefly from Puerto Plata to the Samaná Peninsula in the Cordillera Septentrional that forms the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. A second, lowland group occupies the easternmost portion of the island from the coast west to Santo Domingo. A few puzzling outliers occur at Isla Beata and near Thomazeau, Haiti. Many species are known only from the type locality, or from an unknown locality, and thus their actual distributions remain unclear.Abbottella and its relatives appear to have evolved on mainland Hispaniola, and thus were not part of the Tiburon Peninsula species assemblage that was tectonically rafted to the island. Preliminary radular and phylogenetic studies clearly indicate that Abbottella and its relatives are a distinct monophyletic group apart from the rest of the Annulariidae.
Description
The genus was described by John Brooks Henderson Jr. and by Paul Bartsch in 1920. Their description reads as follows:In 1920, 8 species were classified in the genus Abbottella in 1920.
There are several genera that appear to be related to Abbottella: Lagopoma, Rolleia, and Leiabbottella. Lagopoma contains a single species, Lagopoma lagopoma, which differs from Abbottella in the form of the outer lip. The genus Rolleia differs from Abbottella in lacking spiral sculpture; it consists of Rolleia martensi, Rolleia haitensis, and Rolleia oberi. Leiabbottella contains species lacking all sculpture except for finely incised axial grooves; this genus contains Leiabbottella galaxius, Leiabbottella soluta, and Leiabbottella thompsoni.
Species
Species within the genus Abbottella include:Subgenus Abbottella Henderson & Bartsch, 1920
The shells of species in the subgenus Abbottella are small, depressed, widely umbilicate and helicoid. The shell is widely expanded, often with a fimbriated peristome. Axial and spiral sculpture is usually present, usually forming cusps or serrations at the intersections. The multispiral operculum has an erect, calcified spiral lamella. The radula has a bicuspid inner marginal, in which the inner cusp is much larger than outer one.Abbottella abbotti Bartsch, 1946Abbottella adolfi
- * Abbottella adolfi peninsularis Bartsch, 1946Abbottella aenea Watters, 2010Abbottella calliotropis Watters, 2013Abbottella crossei Abbottella diadema Watters, 2013Abbottella dichroa Watters, 2013
- Abbottella domingoensis Bartsch, 1946 Abbottella gabbi Abbottella haitensis Bartsch, 1946Abbottella harpeza Watters & Duffy, 2010Abbottella mellosa Watters & Duffy, 2010Abbottella milleacantha Watters & Duffy, 2010Abbottella moreletianus - type speciesAbbottella newcombi Abbottella nitens Watters, 2013Abbottella rosaliae Abbottella samanensis Bartsch, 1946Abbottella sanchezi Bartsch, 1946Abbottella sosuaensis Bartsch, 1946Abbottella tenebrosa Watters, 2013Abbottella tentorium Abbottella urbana Watters, 2012Abbottella wilhelmi
Species in the subgenus Gundlachtudora have a shell which is small in size for this family, depressed, helicoid in shape. The umbilicus is wide. The protoconch is not decollated, and consists of 11⁄4 smooth, minute whorls. Spiral sculpture is absent. Axial threads on early whorls are widely spaced, and barely perceptible. On the last whorl there is axial sculpture of microscopic, widely spaced grooves. The aperture is double, circular, adnate to the adjacent whorl, and expanded to various degrees. The operculum is multispiral with a thin, oblique lamella.Abbottella bompardopolensis Bartsch, 1946Abbottella decolorata - type species of the subgenus GundlachtudoraAbbottella paradoxa Watters, 2013
Abbottella may be organized into five species complexes based on conchological characteristics; these groups may be worthy of subgeneric status. One complex has subdued sculpture, a globose shell with a high spire, and a metallic sheen to the shell. It occurs along the Cordillera Septentrional from Sósua to Higüey. The group consists of Abbottella mellosa and Abbottella nitens.
A second complex has small, compact shells covered with numerous, minute pustules or points, the shells often white or scarcely patterned, with only moderately expanded outer lips. This group occurs in the lowlands on the southeastern coast from Santo Domingo to the easternmost portion of the island and north to the Samaná Peninsula. It consists of Abbottella milleacantha, Abbottella aenea, Abbottella tentorium, Abbottella urbana, Abbottella crossei, and Abbottella calliotropis.
A third complex consists of species with rather large, openly coiled to nearly planispiral shells with pronounced prickly sculpture and widely expanded outer lips; the shells are often strongly patterned. The group contains Abbottella haitensis, and Abbottella moreletianus. Bartsch broke Abbottella moreletianus into five subspecies. Zoogeographically, this group presents a problem: the two species occur at opposite ends of the island. This group will be addressed in a future study.
A fourth complex consists of species with small, turbinate shells, strongly sculptured with the outer lip serrate or undulating. The group is distributed in the Cordillera Septentrional from Sósua to the eastern tip of the Samaná Peninsula. It contains Abbottella rosaliae and Abbottella abbotti. Abbottella gabbi may belong to this group as well.
The fifth complex consists of species with generally large, turbinate shells with minute sculpture often arranged in blocks; the outer lip is broadly expanded and the shells are usually darkly colored. It occurs along most of the Cordillera Septentrional, from Puerto Plata through the Samaná Peninsula. The group consists of Abbottella newcombi, Abbottella samanensis, Abbottella sanchezi, Abbottella adolfi, Abbottella dichroa, Abbottella tenebrosa, and Abbottella wilhelmi.
The several remaining species do not fit into the above species complexes. Abbottella harpeza from Isla Beata, somewhat resembles Abbottella gabbi but occurs nearly 200 km away from any other Abbottella species. The peculiar sculpture of Abbottella diadema is so unique that this species may warrant a new genus to contain it.