Radix natalensis
Radix natalensis is a species of freshwater snail, an aquatic gastropod mollusc in the family Lymnaeidae.
This species occurs widely in Africa. It is a major intermediate host for Fasciola gigantica in Africa. Placement of this species in the genus Radix was confirmed by Correa et al..
Distribution
Radix natalensis is a widespread species in Africa, occurring from northern Africa to southern Africa:- Northern Africa: Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Sudan. There are also findings of distribution of Radix natalensis in Algeria 8–10,000 years ago. In Egypt it has been detected in water bodies of the Nile Delta.
- Western Africa: Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal,
- Eastern Africa: Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
- Central Africa: Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.
- Southern Africa: Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
- Madagascar
Description
Radix natalensis was described by the German scientist and traveller Christian Ferdinand Friedrich Krauss in 1848.The shape of the shell is elongate ovoid. The shell is colorless or light brown in color. The height of the aperture covers about 3/4 of the shell height. The lip of the aperture is thin and sharp. The umbilicus is closed. The width of the shell is about 5.75–7 mm. The height of the shell is 4.6–19.2 mm.
The reproductive system and radula was described by Wright .
Ecology
Radix natalensis lives in permanent water bodies. They prefer clear, slow-running water with low salinity and abundant vegetation. An estimated density of Radix natalensis in a natural habitat in Tanzania was 34 snails per m². The snails lived mainly in the shallow water in depths of 0–4 cm, mainly between 20–30 cm from the shoreline. They prefer plant detritus or bedrock as a substrate.Laboratory experiments have shown that some larger snails of Radix natalensis can survive on a wooden surface without water for up to 21 days. Some smaller snails of Radix natalensis have survived desiccation on a soil surface up to 60 days on "black" soil. Some smaller snails of Radix natalensis were able to survive for up to 90 days on soil among sedges or in the "black" soil exposed to sun or in the soil with stones.
Parasites
This species has been found to be an intermediate host of both Fasciola hepatica and Fasciola gigantica. Overall, rates of snail infection vary between 10% and 40%. The highest infection rate was found to be in summer and this may be a factor responsible for lowering snail density in this season.Parasites of Radix natalensis include:Fasciola hepaticaFasciola giganticaTrichobilharzia sp.
- some cercaria from Echinostomatidae
- some xiphidiocercaria from Plagiorchiidae
- four trematode larvae in Zambia
Snails of the non-indigenous species Marisa cornuarietis eliminated Radix natalensis and other two native snail species from a small pond in Tanzania in an experiment in 1982.
Oil extract of the gum myrrh Commiphora myrrha has molluscicidal activity against Radix natalensis.
Phylogeny
A cladogram shows the phylogenic relations of species in the genus Radix:Synonyms
Limnaea cameroni Bourguignat, 1890 Limnaea kynganica Bourguignat, 1890 Limnaea zanzibarica Bourguignat, 1890 Limnaea alexandrina Bourguignat, 1883 Limnaea alexandrina var. gracilis Bourguignat, 1883 Limnaea raffrayi Bourguignat, 1883Limnaea caillaudi Bourguignat, 1883 Limnaea acroxa Bourguignat, 1883 Limnaea aethiopica Bourguignat, 1883 Limnaea africana Bourguignat, 1883Limnaea africana var. azaouadensis Germain, 1909 Limnaea africana var. elata Germain, 1919 Limnaea africana var. gouidimouniensis Germain, 1916 Limnaea africana var. kambaensis Germain, 1911 Limnaea africana var. kouloaensis Germain, 1911 Limnaea anceyana Preston, 1910 Limnaea arabica E. A. Smith, 1894Limnaea benguellensis Morelet, 1867 Limnaea bocageana Morelet, 1867 Limnaea caillaudi Bourguignat, 1883Limnaea chudeaui Germain, 1907 Limnaea damarana O. Boettger, 1910 Limnaea debaizei Bourguignat, 1887 Limnaea electa E. A. Smith, 1882 Limnaea elmeteitensis E.A. Smith, 1894 Limnaea gravieri Bourguignat, 1885Limnaea hovarum Tristram, 1863 Limnaea humerosa E. von Martens, 1897 Limnaea jouberti Bourguignat, 1888 Limnaea kempi Preston, 1912 Limnaea laurenti Bourguignat, 1888 Limnaea lavigeriana Bourguignat, 1888 Limnaea natalensis F. Krauss, 1848 Limnaea nyansae E. von Martens, 1892 Limnaea orophila Morelet, 1864 Limnaea suarezensis Dautzenberg, 1895 Limnaea undussumae E. von Martens, 1897 Limnaea undussumae var. courteti Germain, 1904 Limnaea vignoni Germain, 1909 Limnaeus auricularius var. ribeirensis Reibisch, 1865 Limnaeus benguellensis Morelet, 1867 Limnaeus bocageanus Morelet, 1867 Limnaeus dakaensis Sturany, 1898Limnaea perrieri Bourguignat, 1881Limnaea raffrayi Bourguignat, 1883Lymnaea vatonnei Bourguignat, 1868Lymnaea ''natalensisLimnaeus natalensis Krauss, 1848- *