Siciliaria calcarae cruenta, De Mattia & Reier & Haring, 2021

De Mattia, Willy, Reier, Susanne & Haring, Elisabeth, 2021, Morphological investigation of genital organs and first insights into the phylogeny of the genus Siciliaria Vest, 1867 as a basis for a taxonomic revision (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Clausiliidae), ZooKeys 1077, pp. 1-175 : 1

Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov.

Figs 1.F, 20.3-20.4, 21.6-21.10, 24.12-24.14

Type locality.

Italy, Sicily, Monreale, N side of Monte Gibilmesi, 890 m asl, 38°03'37.03"N, 13°12'38.53"E.

Type material.

1 Holotype (NHMW 113619) [Lab ID 47_1, COI: MW758933, ITS2: MW757078, MW757079] and two Paratypes (NHMW 113620): Italy, Sicily, Monreale, N side of Monte Gibilmesi, 890 m asl, 38°03'37.03"N, 13°12'38.53"E, [Lab ID 47_2, COI: MW758934, ITS2: MW757077, MW757087, MW757088; Lab ID 47_3, MW758935; Lab ID 47_4, MW758936], W. De Mattia and J. Macor leg., 22.vi.2015. 4 dissected spm. 4 Paratypes (CWDM 18226): same locality.

Shell diagnosis.

Shell not decollate; whorls finely striated; dorsal keel absent or barely distinguishable; inferior lamella high or very high; anterior upper palatal plicae present but weak, detached from the lunella; parietalis very long; palatal edge of clausilium plate distally receding, plate somehow cylindrical, palatal edge against distal end bent upwards and more or less pointed.

Shell description

(Figs 21 .6-21.10, 24.12-24.14). The shell is elongated but somehow compressed, markedly fusiform to slightly pyriform, sinistral and not decollate. It is very dark reddish-brown in colour. The external surface is irregularly finely striated to almost completely smooth in some part of the teleoconch. The spire is slowly and regularly growing, with (decollate) 9 1/4 to 10 3/4 slightly convex whorls. The sutures are moderately deep with white papillae all along the teleoconch, definitely denser along the last whorls. The basal and the cervical keels are only barely distinguishable. The umbilicus is closed. The aperture is ~ 1⁄5 of shell height and roundish to subovoid in shape. The PRI is short and it ends at the level of the L. It is not fused with the L but presents a thickening along its posterior part in correspondence with the L. The PRI is not visible from a frontal view of the aperture. The L is dorsal to dorso-lateral. The PUPP is very short or knob-like and connected to the L. The AUPP is thin or rarely absent, detached from the L and not visible from the aperture. The BAS starts directly from the L and it is long and strong, well visible from the aperture. The SCL is absent or very short, connected with the L and resembling an irregular thickening. The IL is high to very high. The SUL is tooth-like, extremely long and remarkably overlapping with the SPL. The SPL is short and it ends at half of the last whorl. The SCOL is not visible. The peristome is continuous, markedly thickened and reflected. It is not superiorly fused to the wall of the first whorl. The palatal edge of the clausilium is distally receding and bent upwards. The plate is somehow cylindrical and gutter-like. The palatal edge against distal end bent upwards and more or less blunt.

Measurements.

Holotype: not decollate shell height 19.2, whorl width 4.4, aperture height 4.3, aperture width 3.2. Paratypes (n = 11, not decollate): shell height 19.4 ± 1.0, whorl width 4.5 ± 0.3, aperture height 4.3 ± 0.3, aperture width 3.1 ± 0.2.

External morphology of the genital organs

(Fig. 20 .3). The FO is longer than the V (FO/V range 1.8-2.1). The VD is thin along its whole course. The FDBC is slightly shorter than the BC+SDBC (FDBC/BC+SDBC range 0.8-0.9). The BC+SDBC is club-like to cylindrical and longer than the V (BC+SDBC/V range 2.1-2.3), with no clear distinction between the SDBC and the BC. The apex is big and rounded. The D is longer than the V (D/V range 3.5-3.8) and longer that the BC+SDBC (D/BC+SDBC range 1.3-1.4), slightly thinner than the BC+SDBC and with a small and round apex. The V is cylindrical. The A is large. The PC is longer than the V (P+E/V range 2.9-3.1). The PR is long and robust. The E is longer than the P (E/P range 2.1-2.3) and gradually shrinking and turning into the VD.

Internal morphology of the genital organs

(Fig. 20 .4). The A is smooth or with few weak fleshy folds. The P presents a large longitudinal fleshy scarcely segmented pleat. Accessory pleats are also present, heavily segmented or smooth, running from the proximal part of the P as far as the A. The fine structure of the penial wall is smooth. The penial pseudopapilla is big, rhombus-shaped and smooth. The P-E transition presents a first distal ER, the PP originates from the second proximal ER. The ELP are not connected to the second proximal ER. The epiphallar formula is: 1ER+2ER(PP)+ELP. The E shows a pattern of 3 to 4 irregular longitudinal extremely fringed pleats. These pleats merge one into another forming two main fringed pleats that run as far as the VD. The V shows a weak irregular pattern of smooth pleats.

Comparative and taxonomical remarks.

The morphologically most similar taxon to Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov. is Siciliaria calcarae borgettensis ssp. nov., but it differs from the latter by its very dark and remarkably smoother shell and the AUPP is not sharp but always suffused and almost not visible from the aperture. As regards the genital organs, contrary to Siciliaria calcarae borgettensis ssp. nov., Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov. presents a very long SDBC+BC and FO. The sculpturing of the internal penis differs by the less fringed longitudinal pleats and the EPLs that reach proximally back as far as the beginning of the VD. Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov. is similar to Siciliaria calcarae orlandoi , anyhow the latter presents a more finely striated shell, its AUPP is stronger and usually closer to the lunella. It was found in haplogroup 1, while Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov. is in the haplogroup 2.

Distribution.

Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov. in known only from the type locality: northern slopes of Monte Gibilmesi near Sagana (Montelepre). Further field investigation is needed in order to determine the actual distribution of the taxon.

Ecology.

This subspecies was found climbing on limestone cliffs hiding among moss and rocks crevices.

Etymology.

Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov. was named after its intense dark red colour of the shell (cruentus = bloody).

Figures

Figure 1. Wagner's (1913, 1925) and Brandt's (1961) Siciliaria genital drawings A Siciliaria septemplicata, Wagner, 1913: plate 572, fig. 14 B Siciliaria grohmanniana grohmanniana, Wagner, 1925: plate 1, fig. 8 C Siciliaria calcarae calcarae, 1925: plate 3, fig. 25 D Siciliaria ferrox, Brandt, 1961: fig. 1 E overall Siciliaria / Sicania and Sicilian Mauritanica distribution F Siciliaria / Sicania and Sicilian Mauritanica distribution of taxa.

Figure 20. Siciliaria calcarae orlandoi Liberto, Reitano, Giglio, Colomba & Sparacio, 2016, Bosco Ficuzza 20.1 whole distal genital organs 20.2 internal distal part of genital organs. Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov., Monte Gibilmesi 20.3 whole distal genital organs 20.4 internal distal part of genital organs.

Figure 21. Siciliaria calcarae orlandoi Liberto, Reitano, Giglio, Colomba & Sparacio, 2016, Bosco Ficuzza 21.1 shell 21.2 detail of the aperture 21.3 clausiliar plate double side 21.4 shell 21.5 detail of the aperture. Siciliaria calcarae cruenta ssp. nov., Monte Gibilmesi 21.6 shell 21.7 detail of the aperture 21.8 shell 21.9 detail of the aperture 21.10 view of the clausiliar plate.