Gyraulus mauritianus

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	MOLLUSCA	GASTROPODA	HYGROPHILA	PLANORBIDAE

Scientific Name:	Gyraulus mauritianus
Species Authority:	(Morelet, 1876)
Synonym/s:	Planorbis mauritianus Morelet, 1876

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Published:

2011

Assessor/s:

Van Damme, D.

Reviewer/s:

Böhm, M. & Collen, B.

Contributor/s:

Soulsby, A.-M., Dyer, E., Whitton, F., Kasthala, G., McGuinness, S., Milligan, H.T., De Silva, R., Herdson, R., Thorley, J., Collins, A. & McMillan, K.

Justification:
Gyraulus mauritianus has been assessed as Least Concern as it is common throughout Mauritius and does not appear to be adversely affected by any of the threat processes which are affecting the country's freshwater habitats.

History:

1996

–

Vulnerable

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is endemic to Mauritius, where it is found throughout the island (O. Griffiths pers. comm. 2009). It has been recorded on the Seychelles (Brown 1994), on Mahe, Victoria, La Digue, Praslin, and Fregate, but these are likely to be from an introduction in the 1970s (Gerlach 2006).
Countries:	Native: Mauritius (Mauritius (main island)) Present - origin uncertain: Seychelles (Seychelles (main island group))
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	This species is described as "very common" on Mauritius (Ministry of Environment and National Development Unit 2006).
Population Trend:	Stable

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	This species associates with the invasive water hyacinth Eichornia crassipes. Brown (1994) lists its habitat as "slowly flowing rivers and streams, especially where slightly polluted". This species also occurs in ponds (O. Griffiths pers. comm. 2009).
Systems:	Freshwater

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	Mauritius has the highest proportion of threatened molluscs of any country globally (86.5 per 1,000 species assessed on the 2006 IUCN Red List). With regards to freshwater molluscs, major threats include invasive species (e.g., the Golden Mystery Snail Pomacea bridgesi, which has recently naturalised on the island and has the potential to cause significant ecological impacts due to large size and high fecundity), water abstraction for agriculture and industry, and pollution due to agricultural and industrial runoff and domestic waste (Ministry of Environment and National Development Unit 2005, 2006). Increased salinisation due to climate change-induced sea level rise is a potential future threat to all freshwater ecosystems on the island (Ministry of Environment and National Development Unit 2005). It is not known if or to what extent this speces is affected by any of these threats. However, the species is currently described as very common across Mauritius, so that it is unlikely that these processes are having adverse effects on this species.

Major Threat(s):

Mauritius has the highest proportion of threatened molluscs of any country globally (86.5 per 1,000 species assessed on the 2006 IUCN Red List). With regards to freshwater molluscs, major threats include invasive species (e.g., the Golden Mystery Snail Pomacea bridgesi, which has recently naturalised on the island and has the potential to cause significant ecological impacts due to large size and high fecundity), water abstraction for agriculture and industry, and pollution due to agricultural and industrial runoff and domestic waste (Ministry of Environment and National Development Unit 2005, 2006). Increased salinisation due to climate change-induced sea level rise is a potential future threat to all freshwater ecosystems on the island (Ministry of Environment and National Development Unit 2005). It is not known if or to what extent this speces is affected by any of these threats. However, the species is currently described as very common across Mauritius, so that it is unlikely that these processes are having adverse effects on this species.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	There are no species-specific conservation measures in place for this species. It is described as "of no conservation concern" (O. Griffiths pers. comm. 2009). Further research regarding the threats to the species is needed, as some of the impacts affecting Mauritian freshwater habitats may also affect this species.

Conservation Actions:

There are no species-specific conservation measures in place for this species. It is described as "of no conservation concern" (O. Griffiths pers. comm. 2009). Further research regarding the threats to the species is needed, as some of the impacts affecting Mauritian freshwater habitats may also affect this species.

Citation:	Van Damme, D. 2011. Gyraulus mauritianus. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 23 May 2013.
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