Freshwater snails are gastropodmollusks that live in fresh water. There are many different families. They are found throughout the world in various habitats, ranging from ephemeral pools to the largest lakes, and from small seeps and springs to major rivers. The great majority of freshwater gastropods have a shell, with very few exceptions. Some groups of snails that live in freshwater respire using gills, whereas other groups need to reach the surface to breathe air. In addition, some are amphibious and have both gills and a lung (e.g. Ampullariidae). Most feed on algae, but many are detritivores and some are filter feeders.
According to a 2008 review of the taxonomy, there are about 4,000 species of freshwater gastropods (3,795–3,972).[1]
As of 2023 there are known 5182 species of fossil freshwater gastropods.[2]
At least 33–38 independent lineages of gastropods have successfully colonized freshwater environments.[3] It is not possible to quantify the exact number of these lineages yet, because they have yet to be clarified within the Cerithioidea.[3] From six to eight of these independent lineages occur in North America.[4]
Taxonomy
2005 taxonomy
The following cladogram is an overview of the main clades of gastropods based on the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi (2005),[5] with families that contain freshwater species marked in boldface:[1] (Some of the highlighted families consist entirely of freshwater species, but some of them also contain, or even mainly consist of, marine species.)
† Paleozoic molluscs of uncertain systematic position
The following cladogram is an overview of the main clades of gastropods based on the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi (2005),[5] modified after Jörger et al. (2010)[6] and simplified with families that contain freshwater species marked in boldface:[1] (Marine gastropods (Siphonarioidea, Sacoglossa, Amphiboloidea, Pyramidelloidea) are not depicted within Panpulmonata for simplification. Some of these highlighted families consist entirely of freshwater species, but some of them also contain, or even mainly consist of, marine species.)
† Paleozoic molluscs of uncertain systematic position
Neritidae - largely confined to the tropics, also the rivers of Europe, family includes the marine "nerites".[7] There are about 110 extant freshwater species.[1]
The Caenogastropoda are a large group of gilled operculate snails, which are largely marine. In freshwater habitats there are ten major families of caenogastropods, as well as several other families of lesser importance:
Architaenioglossa
Ampullariidae - an exclusively freshwater family that is largely tropical and includes the large "apple snails" kept in aquaria.[7] About 105–170 species.[1]
Viviparidae - medium to large snails, live-bearing, commonly referred to as "mystery snails". Worldwide except South America, and everywhere confined to fresh waters.[7] About 125–150 species.[1]
Melanopsidae - family native to rivers draining to the Mediterranean, also Middle East, and some South Pacific islands.[7] About 25–50 species.[1]
Pachychilidae - 165–225 species.[1] native to South and Central America. Formerly included with the Pleuroceridae by many authors.
Paludomidae - about 100 species in south Asia, diverse in African Lakes, and Sri Lanka.[1] Formerly classified with the Pleuroceridae by some authors.
Pleuroceridae - abundant and diverse in eastern North America, largely high-spired snails of small to large size.[7] About 150 species.[3]
Semisulcospiridae - primarily eastern Asia, Japan, also the Juga snails of northwestern North America. Formerly included with the Pleuroceridae. About 50 species.[3]
Thiaridae - high-spired parthenogenic snails of the tropics, includes those referred to as "trumpet snails" in aquaria.[7] About 110 species.[3]
Basommatophorans are pulmonate or air-breathing aquatic snails, characterized by having their eyes located at the base of their tentacles, rather than at the tips, as in the true land snails Stylommatophora. The majority of basommatophorans have shells that are thin, translucent, and relatively colorless, and all five freshwater basommatophoran families lack an operculum.
Chilinidae - small to medium-sized snails confined to temperate and cold South America.[7] About 15 species.[1]
Latiidae - small limpet-like snails confined to New Zealand.[7] One[1] or three species.
Lymnaeidae - found worldwide, but are most numerous in temperate and northern regions.[7] These are the dextral (right-handed) pond snails. About 100 species.
Planorbidae - "rams horn" snails, with a worldwide distribution.[7] About 250 species.[1]
Physidae - left-handed (sinistral) "pouch snails", native to Europe, Asia, North America.[7] About 80 species.[1]
The freshwater snail Physa acuta is in the subclass Heterobranchia and the family Physidae. P. acuta is a self-fertile snail that can undergo either sexual reproduction or self-fertilization. Noel et al.[10] experimentally tested whether accumulation of deleterious mutations is avoided either by inbreeding populations of the snail (undergoing self-fertilization), or in outbreeding populations undergoing sexual reproduction. Inbreeding promotes the homozygous expression of deleterious recessive mutations in progeny that then exposes these mutations to selective elimination because of their deleterious affects on progeny. Outbreeding sexual reproduction allows females to choose male mating partners with smaller mutation loads that then also leads to a reduction of deleterious mutations in progeny. On the basis of their findings, Noel et al.[10] concluded that both outbred and inbred populations of P. acuta can efficiently eliminate deleterious mutations.
As human food
Several different freshwater snail species are eaten in Asian cuisine.
Archaeological investigations in Guatemala have revealed that the diet of the Maya of the Classic Period (AD 250–900) included freshwater snails.[11]
A Bengali dish of stir-fried freshwater snails with onion and garlic paste and other spices, from Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Aquarium snails
Freshwater snails are commonly found in aquaria along with tropical fish. Species available vary in different parts of the world. In the United States, commonly available species include ramshorn snails such as Planorbella duryi, apple snails such as Pomacea bridgesii, the high-spired thiarid Malaysian trumpet snail, Melanoides tuberculata, and several Neritina species.
Parasitology
Life cycle of two liver fluke species which have freshwater snails as intermediate hosts
^Dillon R. T. (2006). Chapter 21. Freshwater Gastropoda. pages 251–259. In: Sturm C. F., Pearce T. A. & Valdés A. (eds.) (2006). The Mollusks: A Guide to Their Study, Collection, and Preservation. American Malacological Society, 445 pp. ISBN978-1-58112-930-4.
^Jörger K. M., Stöger I., Kano Y., Fukuda H., Knebelsberger T. & Schrödl M. (2010). "On the origin of Acochlidia and other enigmatic euthyneuran gastropods, with implications for the systematics of Heterobranchia". BMC Evolutionary Biology10: 323. doi:10.1186/1471-2148-10-323.
^ abcdefghijklmnBanarescu P. (1990). Zoogeography of Fresh Waters, Vol. 1, General Distribution and Dispersal of Freshwater Animals. AULA - Verlag, Weisbaden.
^Reid D. G., Aravind N. A., & Madhyastha N. A. (2013). "A unique radiation of marine littorinid snails in the freshwater streams of the Western Ghats of India: the genus Cremnoconchus W.T. Blanford, 1869 (Gastropoda: Littorinidae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society167(1): 93–135. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2012.00875.x.
^ abNoël E, Fruitet E, Lelaurin D, Bonel N, Ségard A, Sarda V, Jarne P, David P. Sexual selection and inbreeding: Two efficient ways to limit the accumulation of deleterious mutations. Evol Lett. 2018 Dec 10;3(1):80-92. doi: 10.1002/evl3.93. PMID 30788144; PMCID: PMC6369961
^ abcdeChandler A. C. & Read C P. (1961). Introduction to Parasitology. John Wiley and Sons, New York. 822 pp.
^Adams A. M. (2006). Foodborne trematodes. In: Ortega I. R. (ed.) (2006). Foodborne parasites. ISBN0-387-30068-6. page 178.
^ abAdema C. M., Bayne C. J., Bridger J. M., Knight M., Loker E. S., Yoshino T. P. & Zhang S.-M. (2012). "Will All Scientists Working on Snails and the Diseases They Transmit Please Stand Up?". PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases6(12): e1835. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0001835.
Haynes A. (2000). "The distribution of freshwater gastropods on four Vanuatu islands: Espiritu Santo, Pentecost, Éfate and Tanna (South Pacific)". Annales de Limnologie36(2): 101–111. doi:10.1051/limn/2000006, PDF.
