Amphidromus inversus

Amphidromus inversus is a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Camaenidae.

Amphidromus inversus
juvenile Amphidromus inversus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Order:	Stylommatophora
Family:	Camaenidae
Genus:	Amphidromus
Species:	A. inversus
Binomial name
Amphidromus inversus O. F. Müller, 1774
Synonyms
Bulimus contusus Reeve, 1848 (junior synonym) Bulimus elongatus Hombron & Jacquinot, 1854 (junior synonym) Bulimus jayanus I. Lea, 1841 (junior synonym) Helix inversa O. F. Müller, 1774 (original combination)

Like most members of the subgenus Amphidromus, it is chirally dimorphic: within the same populations, both dextral (clockwise-coiled) and sinistral (anticlockwise-coiled) individuals co-exist. This is one of the very few cases of genetic antisymmetry known in nature. Among the subgenus Amphidromus, A. inversus stands out because since c. 2004, it has been the focus of studies aimed at understanding the evolution of chiral dimorphism. Most of these studies have taken place on the Malaysian island of Kapas.

Subspecies

• Amphidromus inversus andamensis (L. Pfeiffer, 1871)
• Amphidromus inversus annamiticus (Crosse & P. Fischer, 1863)
• Amphidromus inversus koperbergi Laidlaw & Solem, 1961

Distribution

Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand

Description

apertural view of a shell of Amphidromus inversus

Ecology

A batch of eggs of the land snail Amphidromus inversus, found in a piece of dead wood on the island of Kapas, Terengganu, Malaysia

Schilthuizen et al. (2005) described spatial structure of population of Amphidromus inversus in Malaysia.

Further reading

• Schilthuizen, M.; Craze, P. G.; Cabanban, A. S.; Davison, A.; Stone, J.; Gittenberger, E.; Scott, B. J. (2007). "Sexual selection maintains whole-body chiral dimorphism in snails". Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 20 (5): 1941–1949. doi:10.1111/j.1420-9101.2007.01370.x. PMC 2121153. PMID 17714311.
• Schilthuizen, M.; Looijestijn, S. (2009). "The Sexology of the Chirally Dimorphic Snail SpeciesAmphidromus inversus(Gastropoda: Camaenidae)". Malacologia. 51 (2): 379. doi:10.4002/040.051.0210.
• Sutcharit, C. (2006). "A new subspecies of Amphidromus (A.) inversus (Müller, 1774) from Peninsular Malaysia". Journal of Conchology. 39 (1): 79–83.
• (in Dutch) "Kurkentrekkers leiden tot slakken-seksschandaal". Naturalis (in Dutch). 19 June 2007. Archived from the original on 23 February 2013.

External links

• Müller, O. F. (1774). Vermium terrestrium et fluviatilium, seu animalium infusorium, Helminthicorum, et testaceorum, non marinorum, succincta historia. vol 2: I-XXXVI, 1-214, 10 unnumbered pages. Havniae et Lipsiae, apud Heineck et Faber, ex officina Molleriana
• C.; Panha, S. (2006). Taxonomic review of the tree snail Amphidromus Albers, 1850 (Pulmonata: Camaenidae) in Thailand and adjacent areas: Subgenus Amphidromus. Journal of Molluscan Studies. 72(1): 1-30

• photo of sinistral shell