Caerbannogia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Caerbannogia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Different views of the shell of the holotype of Caerbannogia calida: A- apertural view; B- left lateral view; C- dorsal view; D- apical view; E- umbilical view; (scale bars = 1 mm) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Order: | Stylommatophora |
| Family: | Eucalodiidae |
| Genus: | Caerbannogia Salvador, Ferreira-Santos, Cavallari & Bichuette, 2025 |
| Species: | C. calida |
| Binomial name | |
| Caerbannogia calida Salvador, Ferreira-Santos, Cavallari & Bichuette, 2025[1] | |
Caerbannogia is a genus of small-sized tropical air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropods in the family Urocoptidae. It is monotypic, containing a single species, Caerbannogia calida, which represents the first record of Eucalodiidae in Brazil. The genus is endemic to the Ressurgência das Areias de Água Quente cave, in the vicinities of the Alto Ribeira Tourist State Park, southeastern Brazil.
Caerbannogia is characterized by a cylindrical-turriform, decollate shell with distinctive narrowing in the body whorl, and the absence of a columellar lamella. Its habitat in a cave environment raises questions about its ecological status as a potential troglophile or troglobite species.
Caerbannogia was described in 2025 based on a single shell collected in the Ressurgência das Areias de Água Quente cave in the Upper Ribeira Valley, Brazil. Its distinctive shell morphology, particularly the absence of a columellar lamella and the narrowing of the body whorl, places it within the family Eucalodiidae, a group previously thought to be restricted to the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America. The genus name is a humorous reference to the Cave of Caerbannog from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and it is grammatically feminine.[1] The specific epithet of C. calida comes from Latin calidus, meaning warm,[2] referring to the type locality in Ressurgência das Areias de Água Quente Cave (Resurgence of the Warm Water Sands, in Portuguese).[1]
Description
The shell of Caerbannogia calida is small (7.86 mm in height and 1.89 mm in width), cylindrical-turriform, and decollate, meaning the apex is broken off naturally as part of its growth. The shell has 8 whorls, is dextral (right-coiling), thin, and pale beige to white.[1] It features prosocline (forward-leaning) axial ribs that become stronger and more widely spaced towards the aperture. Each whorl has a subtle shoulder-like angulation near the suture. The most distinctive feature is the pronounced narrowing in the middle of the body whorl and the preceding whorl. The aperture is subcircular and somewhat elongated upwards. The internal columella is hollow and lacks the lamella characteristic of some related taxa. Since C. calida was described based on a single empty shell, the soft parts of this species are still unknown.[1]