Leptoxis coosaensis (Lea, 1861)

Whelan, Nathan V., Johnson, Paul D., Garner, Jeffrey T. & Strong, Ellen E., 2017, On the identity of Leptoxistaeniata - a misapplied name for the threatened Painted Rocksnail (Cerithioidea, Pleuroceridae), ZooKeys 697, pp. 21-36 : 24-27

Leptoxis coosaensis (Lea, 1861)

Anculosa coosaensis Lea, 1861: 54; 1863a: 257-258, pl. 35, fig. 65; 1863b: 79-80, pl. 35, fig. 65. Lectotype USNM 121295 (Graf, 2001); paralectotypes USNM 1456804 (1 spm), USNM 121294 (4 spms) and USNM 121296 (1 spm) leg. Showalter. "Coosa River, Alabama."

Anculosa aldrichi Goodrich, 1922: 31, pl. 1, figs. 1, 2. Holotype UMMZ 10139, by original designation; paratype, MCZ 169987 (1 spm). "Coosa River, near mouth of Yellowleaf [sic, Yellow Leaf] Creek, Chilton County, Alabama."

Anculosa brevispira Goodrich, 1922: 35, pl. 1, fig. 6. Holotype UMMZ 10144, by original designation; paratype MCZ 169991 (1 spm). "Fort William Shoals, Coosa River, Talladega County, Alabama"; possible paratypes UF 18202 (7 spms). "Coosa River".

Anculosa choccoloccoensis Goodrich, 1922: 34, pl. 1, fig. 7. Holotype UMMZ 10145, by original designation; paratype MCZ 169989 (1 spm). "Choccolocco Creek at Jackson Shoals, Talladega County, Alabama."

Anculosa taeniata lucida Goodrich, 1944: 42. Type material not located, potentially lost. "Coosa [River] tributaries."

Other references: Anculosa coosaensis - Lea 1863: 257-258, pl. 35, fig. 65; Goodrich 1922: 28, pl. 1, figs. 13, 14.

Leptoxis taeniata -Haldeman 1848: 3, pl. 3 figs. 71-72; Burch and Tottenham 1980: 156, figs. 484-486; Burch 1982: 43, figs. 484-486; Lydeard et al. 1997: 117-128; Lydeard et al. 1998: 183-193; Dillon and Lydeard 1998: 113-121, fig. 2; Holznagel and Lydeard 2000: 233-257; Lee et al. 2006: 314-317; Strong and Köhler 2009: 483-502; Tolley-Jordan et al. 2015: 235-249; Whelan et al. 2015: 85-95, fig. 4; Whelan 2016: 221-226. [Not L. taeniata of Conrad]

Anculosa taeniata - Tryon 1873: 408-409, figs. 813-815. [Not L. taeniata of Conrad]

Anculotus taeniatus -Reeve 1860: pl. 6, fig. 50. [Not L. taeniata of Conrad]

Other material examined.

UMMZ 10144, Coosa River at Fort Williams Shoals, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.1477°N, 86.4831°W); UMMZ 10139, Coosa River near mouth of Yellow Leaf Creek, Chilton County, Alabama (~ 32.9566°N, 86.5177°W); UMMZ 10145, Choccolocco Creek at Jackson Shoals, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.5450°N, 86.0896°W); MCZ 169987, Coosa River near mouth of Yellow Leaf Creek, Chilton County, Alabama (~ 32.9566°N, 86.5177°W); MCZ 169989, Choccolocco Creek at Jackson Shoals, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.5450°N, 86.0896°W); USNM 12068, Coosa River, Alabama; USNM 321181, Duncan’s Riffle Coosa River, Chilton County (~ 32.8057°N, 86.4450°W; USNM 321862, Higgin’s Ferry Coosa River, Chilton County, Alabama (~ 32.8056°N, 86.4448°W); UF 82401, Peckerwood Shoals, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.1176°N, 86.4728°W); UF 416903, Talladega Creek near Nottingham, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.3614°N, 86.2237°W); UF 82358, Coosa River at Fort Williams Shoals, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.1477°N, 86.4831°W); UF 81660, Coosa River at Fort Williams Shoals, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.1477°N, 86.4831°W); UF 82419, Coosa River at Butting Ram Shoals, Coosa County, Alabama (~ 32.9414°N 86.5159°W); UF 413800, Coosa River at Lonigan Shoals, St. Clair County, Alabama (~ 33.7627°N, 86.0447°W); UF 81085, Choccolocco Creek at Jackson Shoals, Alabama (33.5450°N, 86.0896°W); UF 18202, Coosa River; UF 416913, Coosa River at Wetumpka, Elmore County, Alabama (~ 32.5396°N, 86.2056°W); UF 416911, Coosa River at Wetumpka, Elmore County, Alabama (~ 32.5396°N, 86.2056°W); UF 416908, Waxahatchee Creek 4 mi above mouth, Shelby County, Alabama (~ 33.0335°N, 86.5787°W); UF 416920, Kellys [sic, Kelly] Creek 2 mi above mouth, St. Clair County, Alabama (~ 33.4348°N, 86.3539°W); UF 416897, Tallasahatchee [sic, Tallaseehatchee] Creek 2-3 mi east of Childersburg, Talladega County, Alabama (~ 33.2841°N, 86.3098°W); UF 416917, Beeswax Creek, Shelby County, Alabama; NCSM 59354, Terrapin Creek 7 mi south of Centre, Cherokee County, Alabama (~ 34.0639°N, 85.6146°W); NCSM 59359, Tallahatchie [sic, Tallasseehatchee] Creek, Calhoun County, Alabama (33.7785°N, 85.9908°W); NCSM 59358, Ohatchee Creek, Calhoun County, Alabama (33.7801°N, 85.9972°W); USNM 504866, Coosa River, near Wilsonville, Shelby County, Alabama (~ 33.2162°N, 86.4645°W); USNM 504867, Coosa River 1 mi from Wilsonville, Shelby County, Alabama (~ 33.2162°N, 86.4645°W); USNM 336408, Coosa River at The Bar, Chilton County, Alabama (~ 32.7976°N, 86.4348°W); USNM 1437765, Coosa River, Shelby County, Alabama (33.3744°N, 86.3550°W); USNM 1249597, Choccolocco Creek, Talladega County, Alabama (33.5445°N, 86.0414°W); USNM 1249600, Buxahatchee Creek, Shelby County, Alabama (33.0727°N, 86.6775°W); USNM 1437762, Ohatchee Creek, Calhoun County, Alabama (33.7795°N, 86.0002°W); USNM 1437763, Ohatchee Creek, Calhoun County, Alabama (33.7795°N, 86.0002°W); USNM 1437764, Ohatchee Creek, Calhoun County, Alabama (33.7795°N, 86.0002°W).

Diagnosis.

Shell ovate, two to four whorls, spire often reduced to obsolete but sometimes elevated with obtuse apex. Aperture large, ovate, at least half the height of body whorl. Reddish brown spiral bands typically present, usually four in number, almost always interrupted. Columella often purple. Head-foot and mantle pigmented orange, mottled with black, with one transverse black band across middle of snout and one transverse black band across middle of head. Clutches small (<6 eggs), with minimal organic and/or inorganic matter incorporated into external casings.

Historical distribution.

Coosa River above the Fall Line from Wetumpka, Alabama, upstream to the confluence of Terrapin Creek and the Coosa River in Cherokee County, Alabama. Some large Coosa River tributaries including Choccolocco, Buxahatchee, Talladega, and Terrapin creeks.

Current distribution.

Four disjunct populations: Choccolocco Creek, Talladega County, Alabama; Buxahatchee and Watson creeks, Shelby County, Alabama; Ohatchee Creek, Calhoun County, Alabama; Logan Martin Dam tailwaters of the Coosa River, Shelby-Talladega counties, Alabama.

Remarks.

USNM 121295 (Fig. 3A) originates from the Lea collection, is from the published L. coosaensis type locality, leg. Showalter, and is the shell figured by Lea (1863), with the number 65 inked onto the apertural aspect of the body whorl corresponding to the figure number. Lea (1863) indicated that he had six specimens, yet there are seven specimens distributed among the three simultaneously accessioned lots now registered as USNM 121294 (Fig. 3F-I), USNM 1456804 (see photographs on FigShare, https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.5084272.v1), and USNM 121296 (Fig. 3J). Consequently, either the specimen count in Lea (1863) was in error, or one of the included shells was acquired subsequently and has no type status.

Lea (1861) described Anculosa coosaensis from the Coosa River and provided a brief description in Latin. In a subsequent extended description in English, Lea (1863) characterized the species as, "smooth, obtusely conical, thick, dark horn-color, very much banded; spire elevated, obtuse at the apex; sutures very much impressed; whorls four, very much constricted below the sutures, the last large; aperture rounded, white, much banded within; columella thickened, incurved, dark purple; outer lip acute and expanded." In the remarks, he commented that the aperture is more than half the length of the shell and that the bands may be interrupted. This description, as well as the type material (Fig. 3 F–J) match the current concept of the Painted Rocksnail (Fig. 2). Although formerly considered a synonym of L. taeniata , L. coosaensis is the oldest available name for the Painted Rocksnail.

We have been unable to locate type material of Anculosa taeniata lucida Goodrich, 1944. No holotype was designated, nor was a figure provided, but based on the original description and the type locality of tributaries of the Coosa River, we conclude that this entity does not merit recognition at the subspecies level and synonymize it with L. coosaensis .