Orcula (Hausdorfia) Pall-Gergely & Irikov

Pall-Gergely, Barna, Deli, Tamas, Irikov, Atanas & Harl, Josef, 2013, Subgeneric division of the genus Orcula Held 1837 with remarks on Romanian orculid data (Gastropoda, Pulmonata, Orculidae), ZooKeys 301, pp. 25-49 : 33-34

Orcula (Hausdorfia) Pall-Gergely & Irikov subgen. n.

Type species.

Orcula zilchi Urbański 1960 (by monotypy).

Diagnosis.

Shell with conical apex and strong axial sculpture (irregular axial growth lines), with three columellar lamellae (columellar, supracolumellar and one short lamellae above), palatalis reaches its maximum height on the dorsolateral side. Penial caecum very long with thickened base, canal connecting the proximal end of the epiphallus to the penial caecum.

Etymology.

The new subgenus is named in honour of Dr Bernhard Hausdorf (University of Hamburg), who first noted the unusual shell characters of Orcula zilchi and questioned its generic status ( Hausdorf 1996). It is feminine.

Distribution.

See under Orcula (Hausdorfia) zilchi .

Remarks.

According to Schileyko (2012), the penial caecum of Orcula fuchsi is long and slender, with a thickened base, making it similar in morphology to Orcula zilchi . However, the characteristic canal connecting the proximal end of the epiphallus with the penial caecum of Orcula zilchi is lacking in Orcula fuchsi . The long caecum of this species is also illustrated by Gittenberger (1978), but its base is not conspicuously thickened. This may vary between populations or during an individual’s life history.