Type specimens of Hawaiian land snails in the Smithsonian Institution, Natural Museum of Natural History, with lectotype designations.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

March 2017

Abstract

Yeung, Norine W., Robert H. Cowie, Kenneth A. Hayes, and Ellen E. Strong. Type Specimens of HawaiianLand Snails in the Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, with Lectotype Designations.Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology, number 647, vi + 34 pages, 11 figures, 2017. — Pacific islandland snail faunas are among the most threatened faunas in the world, having suffered a higher rate of extinctionthan any other major animal group. The Hawaiian land snails are among the most species-rich and mostseverely affected of these faunas, yet the current status of most of the Hawaiian species is unknown. Most ofthe major taxonomic studies on the fauna were undertaken 50–100 years ago and only certain groups werecomprehensively studied. New research is uncovering undescribed species, both extant and extinct. The needfor rigorous taxonomic treatment of the group is acute if the taxonomic and conservation status of the manyspecies is to be ascertained, and the basis for such research is comprehensive study of type material. TheSmithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History holds type material of 39 nominal species-group taxaof Hawaiian land snails belonging to eight families; this annotated catalog provides details of this material.Of these taxa, 29 were described by Augustus Addison Gould from material collected by the U.S. ExploringExpedition of 1838–1842. For completeness, we also provide details for one lot of purported paralectotypesthat are here inferred not to have been syntypes and one lot representing an unavailable infrasubspecificname. We designate lectotypes for 12 species-group taxa.

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