Clithon retropictum (, ) is a species of freshwater and brackish water snail with an operculum. It is an aquatic gastropod in the family Neritidae.
Distribution This species occurs on the Japanese islands of Honshu, Kyushu, and Shikoku. イシマキガイ Clithon retropictus . accessed 6 January 2011. It also occurs on the South Korean island of Jeju, and in Taiwan.
Description
Habitat C. retropictus lives in brackish water and in freshwater.
Feeding habits Clithon retropictum is an herbivorous species. Ohara T. & Tomiiyama K. (2000). "Niche segregation of coexisting two freshwater snail species, Semisulcospira libertina (Gould) (Prosobranchia: Pleuroceridae) and Clithon retropictus (Martens) (Prosobranchia: Neritidae)". Venus 59(2): 135–147. CiNii.
Life cycle C. retropictum is oviparous.FURUJO Yuki & TOMIYAMA Kiyonori. Distribution and Microhabitat of Coexisting Two Freshwater Snail Species, Semisulcospira libertina (Gould) (Prosobranchia; Pleuroceridae) and Clithon retropictus (Martens) (Prosobranchia: Neritidae). The Japanese journal of malacology. Venus, Vol. 59, No. 3(20000930), pp. 245-260. Juveniles hatch from eggs in September. The lifespan of C. retropictum is up to 12 years and it is one of the most long-lived freshwater gastropods.
Parasites Vibrio parahaemolyticus
Status The species is considered as a second grade endangered species by the Korean Ministry of Environment.
References
Further reading HIRATA TETSU, UEDA HAJIME, TSUCHIYA YASUTAKA, SATO TOSHIHIKO & NISHIWAKI SABURO. 1999. Distribution of Clithon retropictus(Gastropoda; Neritidae) and environmental conditions in the rivers of Izu Peninsula. Bulletin of the Faculty of Education & Human Sciences, Yamanashi University, Volume 1, number 1, 24-30. (article in Japanese, English abstract)
External links
https://web.archive.org/web/20070909103814/http://shell.kwansei.ac.jp/~shell/pic_book/data08/r000792.html photos of shells https://web.archive.org/web/20080907101015/http://www.gastropods.com/8/Shell_8638.html photos of shells