A new species of Metafruticicola (Gastropoda, Hygromiidae) from the Aegean Archipelago and new anatomical and distributional data on some congeneric species

Abstract

Metafruticicola is a diverse land snail genus inhabiting the north-eastern Mediterranean region from S Albania to Israel. In this study, we describe Metafruticicola kavafis sp. nov., a new species for science from Kasos Island. We also focus on the reproductive system of steno-endemic species and subspecies of the genus from small islands of the Aegean Archipelago, whose anatomy was previously completely unknown. These species are M. crassicosta, M. pieperi, M. coartata gemina and M. nicosiana conciliatrix. For the latter subspecies, only the outlines of the genitalia were previously given. Additionally, we investigated in detail for the first time the genital anatomy of M. nicosiana nicosiana from Cyprus. Hitherto, information on the genital apparatus of this subspecies was based on sparse data derived from sexually immature specimens. These new anatomical data contribute to a plethora of controversies concerning the subgeneric division of Metafruticicola, which was based solely on conchological features and especially the microsculpture of the teleoconch. We suggest that the current subgeneric division of the genus should be abandoned.