| Partula turgida | |
|---|---|
) | |
| Shell of a Partula turgida | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| (unranked): | clade Heterobranchia clade Euthyneura clade Panpulmonata clade Eupulmonata clade Stylommatophora informal group Orthurethra |
| Superfamily: | Partuloidea |
| Family: | |
| Genus: | Partula |
| Species: | †P. turgida |
| Binomial name | |
| †Partula turgida (Pease, 1864) | |
†Partula turgida was a species of air-breathing tropical land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Partulidae. This species was endemic to Ra'iātea, French Polynesia. It died out in 1996, and is now extinct.[1] The snail's low rate of movement made it hard to determine the exact date of death but it was confirmed on 31 January.[2]
P. turgida was being kept alive in captivity, when the population suffered a crash caused by the microsporidian genus Steinhausia. This is the first definitive report of an extinction of a species caused by a parasite.[3]
References
- ^ a b Coote, T. (2009). "Partula turgida". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2009: e.T16331A5603037. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2009-2.RLTS.T16331A5603037.en.
- ^ "Tiny Tree Snail Finally Creeps To Extinction". Chicago Tribune. 1 February 1996.
- ^ Cunningham A. A. & Daszak P. (1998). "Extinction of a Species of Land Snail Due to Infection with a Microsporidian Parasite". Conservation Biology. 12 (5): 1139–1141. doi:10.1046/j.1523-1739.1998.97485.x. JSTOR 2387588.