Pupopsis Gredler, 1898

Wu, Min & Gao, Linhui, 2010, A review of the genus Pupopsis Gredler, 1898 (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora: Enidae), with the descriptions of eight new species from China, Zootaxa 2725, pp. 1-27 : 2-4

Pupopsis Gredler, 1898 : 45

Type species: Buliminus pupopsis Gredler, 1898 , by original designation Shell. Elongate ovate; rather solid; more or less glossy; with 5.750–9.000 moderately convex whorls. Whorls not speckled. Last whorl straight or slightly ascending in front; evenly rounded at periphery. Colour light corneous to whitish. Apex smooth; subsequent whorls irregularly finely wrinkled. Aperture ovate or ear-shaped; slightly oblique; with reflexed margins; with 0–4 teeth. Angular tubercle usually well developed. One parietal tooth. Columella not truncate. Columellar tooth, if present, rounded or hidden behind columella, extending and/or expanded inwards or not. Palatal margin with or without 1–2 teeth. The lower palatal tooth, if present, can be ridgelike and can extend inward up to an entire whorl. Umbilicus minute; cylindrical or slit-like. Height 5.5–15.4, diam. maj. 2.0–6.2.

Genitalia. Vas deferens entering epiphallus with distinct demarcation. Epiphallus short or long; straight or forming a few loops; externally smooth, without glandular wall. Epiphallic caecum always present in middle of epiphallus. Flagellum present or absent, if present very short. Penis slightly clavate or evenly thick; internally with more than two longitudinal pilasters; distally with one or two V-shaped pilasters, or two thickened pilasters connected at their distal end. V-shaped pilaster, if present, with proximal free end approaching at penial retractor insertion. A papilla developed by fused distal pilasters forming a V-shaped structure usually absent. Penial caecum usually present; if present, sac-shaped and situated at boundary between epiphallus and penis. Penial appendix branched off from penis at some distance from atrium; divided into three distinct sections A-1+A-2, A-3 and A- 4+A-5. A-1 without verge toward penial chamber. Boundary between A-4 and A-5 indistinct. Penial retractor biramous; attaching to penis and to A-1+A-2. Branches of penial retractor attached to diaphragm in close proximity to each other. Penial branch of penial retractor attaching to middle part of penis. Besides penial and appendicular retractors no additional retractors present. Atrium short. Vagina short; not swollen; straight; not lined with loose, spongy tissue; unpigmented. Muscular band connecting vagina and epiphallus absent. Bursa copulatrix without apical ligament. Duct of bursa copulatrix long; proximally twisted or straight. Diverticle absent (in the type species P. pupopsis ) or present (in all other anatomically known species); if present, distally expanded or not.( Schileyko 1998; with modifications according to this study)

Remarks. Gredler (1898a: 45) introduced the genus name Pupopsis conditionally in the description of his new species Buliminus pupopsis : “I am convinced that this extraordinary animal will eventually be elevated to a genus of its own. Then its current species name may advance to become the genus name.” (Translated from the German original.) According to ICZN Art. 15.1, Pupopsis Gredler, 1898 is available, despite having been established conditionally.

The genus Pupopsis can be distinguished from the other enid genera distributed in China by conchological characters, such as shell shape and the usually more strongly developed apertural armature ( Table 1 ). However, its species show a considerable variety in the structure of the genitalia. E.g., in the male part of the genitalia, the flagellum can be absent, nearly absent or clearly present; the penial caecum can be absent or present. In the female part, the diverticle of the bursa copulatrix may be present or absent.

Distribution. China: N Sichuan, SE Gansu, NW Xinjiang.

Pupopsis dissociabilis Sturany, 1900: 35 , pl. 2, figs. 19–21.

Buliminus (Pupopsis) dissociabilis— Möllendorff, 1901: 375; Kobelt, 1902: 874, pl. 108, figs. 10, 11.

Type material. Whereabouts of the type material unknown.

Type locality. Below the village Ku-tu-pa, South Gansu (now belongs to Sichuan and is spelled Kuodaba; 32°28'N, 104°24'E).

Material examined. None.

Distribution. Sichuan (only known from the type locality).

Description of shell (after Sturany 1900: 35, pl. 2 figs. 19–21). Shell barrel-shaped, with 9 whorls which are, with the exception of the embryonic whorls, finely striated. Aperture relatively small, circular. Peristome broadly expanded but not reflexed, with a thick callus. A heavy callus connects the insertions, bearing an angular tubercle separated from the palatal wall by a narrow channel. Columellar margin expanded over the narrow perforation of the umbilicus, which is only visible from the side. Parietal tooth a humped fold, reaching far inside. Columellar tooth absent. Palatal tooth very heavy, extending inward through the entire body whorl, visible from the outside as a white line parallel with the suture. Last whorl slightly ascending toward the aperture. Height 9.1, diam. maj. 4.1.

Tables

TABLE 1. Comparison of some conchological features among the four genera Serina Gredler, 1898, Holcauchen Möllendorff, 1901, Clausiliopsis Möllendorff, 1901 and Pupopsis Gredler, 1898 (+, present / yes; -, absent / no.; *, unpublished data).

Characters	Serina	Holcauchen	Clausiliopsis	Pupopsis
Aperture nearly entire, barely attached	+	-	-	-
Abapertural peripheral depression on body whorl	+/-	+	-	-
Columellar tooth/teeth	1–2*	2	1	0–1
Palatal tooth/teeth	0	0–1	0	0–2
Parietal tooth	0	0	1	0–1
1. Pupopsis dissociabilis Sturany, 1900 Figs. 1, 2A; Table 2