Page 69 - Land Snails of New Mexico

P i n e S p r i n g C a n y o n , T e x a s , i n t h e s o u t h e a s t e r n p a r t o f t h e Guadalupe Mountains. (northern threeband)
Distribution and Habitat—Humboldtiana ultima has been takenintheGuadalupeMountainsofTexasandNewMexico and, according to Fullington (1979:96), occurs in the Sierra DiabloMountainsofHudspethCo.,Texas.InNewMexico,it has been taken in canyons of the Guadalupe Mountains as far north as Dark Canyon (Wahl and Metcalf, 1982:43). In Devil's
D e n a n d D a r k C a n y o n s , it h a s b e e n f o u n d l i v i n g i n a m i x t u r e o f rockrubbleandleaflitterofdeciduoustrees,butnotintalus accumulationsasisthecasewithmany largerlandsnailsofthe r e g i o n . A t t h e l o c a l i t y i n D a r k C a n y o n , it a p p e a r e d t o b e l i v i n g in a colony, and was found at the base of steep cliffs, on a gentle slope where large oak trees provided leaf litter some 2 or 3 inches thick. T h e snails w e r e f o u n d u n d e r the leaves o n slightly damp soil.
From ourobservationsofNew Mexico landsnailswe discern
certain species or subspecies that are of restricted distribution, andmayormaynotbethreatenedorendangered.Itseemsuseful toidentifythese.They areindicatedbelow,withno attemptto assignthemtomoreformalcategories.
A. Endemicspeciesorsubspeciesknownonlyfrom small to medium-sized isolated mountains in the
D o ñ a A n a Co. It occurs sparingly in rhyolitic talus in these mountains.
9. AshmunellamacromphalaVagvolgyiisreportedonly fromthehigherpartsofCooke(Cooks)Peak,LunaCo. 10. AshmunellawalkeriFerrisshasbeentaken,sofar,only
around Baldy Peak and on South Peak in the Florida Mountains.
11. AshmunellahebardiPilsbryandVanattaisknownonly from the south wall of Chainey Canyon in the western part of the Big Hatchet Mountains, Hidalgo Co. Its relationship(whethersubspeciesordistinctspecies?) to Ashmunella mearnsii of the same range isunclear.
12. AshmunellaanimasensisVagvolgyiisrecordedonly from the vicinity of Animas Peak, Hidalgo Co.
13. OreohelixmetcalfeicuchillensisPilsbryandFerrissis reported living only from the south end of the Cuchillo Mountains,SierraCo.We wereunabletogain access tothisarea,anddonotknowitscurrentstatus.
14, Radiocentrumferrissi(Pilsbry)hasbeentaken,living, sofarasweknow,onlyattwolocalitiesinthesouthern Big Hatchet Mountains (Pilsbry, 1915:333).
15. SonorellahachitanapeloncillensisPilsbryandFerriss has been reported only from the type locality in Skull Canyon,PeloncilloMountains,HidalgoCo.
16. Sonorella animasensis Pilsbry occurs only in the Animas Mountains, Hidalgo Co.
17. SonorellatodseniMillerisknownonlyfromthetype localityintheDoña Ana Mountains,Doña Ana Co.No doubt,thespeciesisrestrictedtothissmall,low group
1.
2.
3.
4.
southern part of the state:
ValloniasonoranaPilsbryoccursonlyintheareaof Big Hatchet Peak, Big Hatchet Mountains, Hidalgo Co., however,itisquitepossiblysynonymouswithVallonia gracilicosta, and not a true species itself. HolospirametcalfiThompsonisknownonlyfromthe north face of Howells Ridge at the base of massive cliffs. CoelostemmapyrgonastaThompsonisknownonly fromBishopsCapMountain,DoñaAnaCo.Itseems fairly widespread within this small complex of limestone mountains.
Ashmunella amblya cornudasensis Vagvolgyi is found in the Cornudas Mountain complex of southern Otero Co. Specimens have been taken on Chatfield, Wind and Flat Top Mountains, all in igneous talus accumulations. The species probably occurs in two or threeothermountainsofthegroup.
SPECIESORSUBSPECIESTHATAPPEARTO BE OF RESTRICTED OCCURRENCE INNEW MEXICO
5. AshmunellaharrisiMetcalfandSmarttisknownonly
from canyons on the east side of Goat Mountain in the southeasternSanAndresMountains,DoñaAnaCo., ofmountains. where living specimens are exceedingly scarce. It hybridizeswithAshmunela pasonis pasonis (Drake) in
eastern Bear Canyon, south of Goat Mountain.
6. AshmunellatodseniMetcalfandSmartthasbeentaken
only in Maple and Texas Canyons in the Organ Mountains,DoñaAnaCo.,butmayalsooccurinthe malacologically unexplored southeastern part of the range.
7. AshmunellatetrodonfragilisPilsbryandFerrissis k n o w n only from a rock slide north of Hillsboro, Sierra Co.We wereabletoconfirmitsperseverancetherein January 1995, 80 years afteritsdiscovery. Itseemingly occursina verysmallarea.
8. AshmunellarileyensisMetcalfandHurleyisrestricted to Mount Riley and nearby Mount Cox in southern
1. OreohelixnogalensisPilsbryispresentlyrestrictedto theSierraBlancaMountains(SierraBlanca-Nogal Peak) of Lincoln and Otero Counties.
2. OreohelixpilsbryiFerrissisknownonlyfromtwo localities along Mineral Creek, west of Chloride, Black Range, Sierra Co.
3. OreohelixconfragosaMetcalfisknownfromone
localityintheeasternpartofthePinosAltosMountains, Grant Co.
4. Oreohelix litoralis Crews and Metcalf has been collected at several localities in hills around the
B. Speciesofrestrictedoccurrencewithinarelatively large mountain range or in more than one range:
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