Tylomelania
| Tylomelania | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Apertural view of a shell of Tylomelania neritiformis | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| (unranked): |
clade Caenogastropoda clade Sorbeoconcha |
| Superfamily: | Cerithioidea |
| Family: | Pachychilidae |
| Genus: |
Tylomelania Sarasin & Sarasin, 1897 |
| Diversity | |
| 46 described species | |
clade Sorbeoconcha
Tylomelania is a genus of freshwater snails which have an operculum, aquatic gastropod mollusks in the family Pachychilidae. In the aquarium hobby, snails from this genus are commonly known as "rabbit snails" (not to be confused with sea hares).
A sister group (the closest relative) of Tylomelania is genus Pseudopotamis (2 species living on the Torres Strait Islands).Tylomelania and Pseudopotamis split in the Middle Miocene c. 19.5 Mya.
These freshwater snails are endemic to Sulawesi in Indonesia, with the vast majority restricted to Lake Poso and the Malili Lake system (consisting of Matano and Towuti, and the smaller Lontoa (Wawantoa), Mahalona, Masapi).
They probably cannot live at an altitude above about 700 m.
There were known 34 described species in 2005. Thomas von Rintelen with colleagues described 15 new species of Tylomelania in 2003-2008.
Tylomelania species diversification started in c. 5.4 Mya and was probably caused by the late Miocene and Pliocene orogeny.
Species within the genus Tylomelania include:
In species within this genus, the albumen gland is very large.Pallial oviduct evolved into an uterine brood (that release shelled juvenile snails).
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Wikipedia