Suriname
Suriname land snails
30-01-2009 19:40
Another faunal project is on its way. Land snails of
Suriname. The context is a broader project in
Naturalis, also encompassing other
(non-malacological) groups. One of the aims is to
have an up-to-date overview of the biodiversity of
the country. Land Mollusca is one of the priority
groups, not because land snails as such are
considered so important, but the availability of my
knowledge just comes in handy. Sometimes, one has to
be just opportunistic...
The first step was to make a literature overview and to gather the localities where material has been collected. So far so good, and it is clear where the blank spots are located...
The faunal list contains 54 species, but there are several groups that might turn out to be problematic. Both new synonyms and faunal additions are possible during scrutinizing of collections. Several species are known from Guyana or French Guiana that have not been reported from Suriname.
The lack of recent revisions of the major families is striking. Any volunteers for (non-orthalicid) groups are clearly in high demand. There is a ‘working list’ available, just in case there is someone with an interest in Neotropical snails :-)
The first step was to make a literature overview and to gather the localities where material has been collected. So far so good, and it is clear where the blank spots are located...
The faunal list contains 54 species, but there are several groups that might turn out to be problematic. Both new synonyms and faunal additions are possible during scrutinizing of collections. Several species are known from Guyana or French Guiana that have not been reported from Suriname.
The lack of recent revisions of the major families is striking. Any volunteers for (non-orthalicid) groups are clearly in high demand. There is a ‘working list’ available, just in case there is someone with an interest in Neotropical snails :-)