Metafruticicola nicosiana nicosiana (Mousson, 1854)

Bitzilekis, Eleftherios, Vardinoyannis, Katerina & Mylonas, Moisis, 2023, A new species of Metafruticicola (Gastropoda, Hygromiidae) from the Aegean Archipelago and new anatomical and distributional data on some congeneric species, European Journal of Taxonomy 879 (1), pp. 1-23 : 6

Metafruticicola nicosiana nicosiana (Mousson, 1854)

Fig. 2A, C, E

Material examined

CYPRUS – Paphos district • 3 specs in 75% alcohol, 3 dissections; Vouni Panagias ; 34.9069° N, 32.6476° E; 23 Dec 2004; M. Mylonas leg.; NHMC 50.22238 . – Limassol district • 6 shells, 6 specs in 75% alcohol, 6 dissections; Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates ; 34.67° N, 32.8612° E; 17 Feb. 2000; K. Vardinoyannis leg.; NHMC 50.21350 • 9 shells, 1 spec. in 75% alcohol, 1 dissection; Agios Georgios Alamanou ; 34.7171° N, 33.2303 E; 26 Feb. 2010; K. Vardinoyannis leg.; NHMC 50.35422 .

Locus typicus

Cyprus “provenant des monts calcaires entre Cerines et Nicosie ”.

Description

SHELL. Description is given by Bank et al. (2013: 101).

SHELL DIMENSIONS (n = 15). H 6.69–8.69 mm; D 9.91–12.7 mm; W 5–54/s.

GENITALIA ( Fig. 2C, E ). The reproductive system and its inner structures are described here for the first time. Flagellum very long, more than twice the length of epiphallus. Epiphallus evenly thick throughout its length. Penial retractor attached at the proximal third of the epiphallus. Penis bulky, thicker and quite distinct in its junction with epiphallus and less than half the length of the latter. Inside the penis there is a heart-shaped penial papilla, but when viewing it from the rear it appears globular. Specimens from Vouni Panagias show some horizontal ridges on the surface of the penial papilla, while in the animals from the Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates the surface is smooth ( Fig. 2E ). Epiphallic pore opens in the slit that divides the upper side of the papilla. Inner penial walls with few prominent vertical ridges ( Fig. 2E ). These ridges were significantly smoother in two out of the five animals. Vas deferens slender. Vagina as thick as the penis and half to one third of its length. The base of the duct of the gametolytic gland is as broad as the penis and is thick-walled. Inside its thickened base there are slender longitudinal ridges ( Fig. 2E ). Free oviduct around three quarters the length of the penis and half the width of the base of the duct of the gametolytic gland. Gametolytic gland globular to oval-shaped.

Figures

Fig. 2. Metafruticicola (Rothifruticicola) nicosiana. A, C, E. M. (Rothifruticicola) nicosiana nicosiana (Mousson, 1854), Cyprus, Limassol district, Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates (NHMC 50.21350). A. Shell. C. General view of genitalia. E. Internal structure of penis, penial papilla and the base of the duct of the gametolytic gland. B, D, F. M. (Rothifruticicola) nicosiana conciliatrix Fuchs & Käufel, 1936, Greece, Karpathos Island, Asia (NHMC 50.39991). B. Shell. D. General view of genitalia. F. Internal structure of penis, penial papilla and the base of the duct of the gametolytic gland. Abbreviations: see Material and methods.