Title

Conchological and genitalic comparisons of Jaminia loewii populations in Turkey

by Aydin Örstan

A summary of Örstan A. & Yildirim, M.Z. 2003. Conchological and genitalic comparisons of Jaminia
loewii populations in Turkey (Gastropoda: Pulmonata: Enidae). Zoology in the Middle East, 28:67-76.

The land snail Jaminia loewii sensu lato has a widespread distribution in Turkey, extending from the Aegean coast to the Isparta-Burdur area and even perhaps further to the east. In this paper we showed that the shells from the coastal colonies, Jaminia loewii godetiana (Kobelt, 1880), were in general smaller than those from the inland colonies, Jaminia loewii loewii (Philippi, 1844). However, there were no differences in the genitalia of the specimens from the coastal and inland colonies. Nevertheless, we argued that the conchological differences are probably not climatically induced (that is, the differences in shell dimensions are not due to phenotypic plasticity) and retained the two subspecies.

Jaminia loewii godetiana from the vicinity of Kusadasi, Turkey (shell length, ~11 mm).

Genitalia of Jaminia loewii loewii from Isparta, Turkey (scale is in millimeters).

In western Turkey, J. loewii godetiana seems to distributed in a discontinuous pattern: between the colonies there are gaps, sometimes tens of kilometers wide, of seemingly suitable areas of calcareous rocks that are devoid of this species. For example, based on the results of the survey we conducted in August 2002, the species appears to be absent on the entire Bodrum Peninsula, although it has been recorded from some of the nearby islands in the Aegean. Between Bodrum and the hills north of the river Küçük Menderes, a range spanning about 100 km, I have so far found J. loewii godetiana only at five stations out of more than 30.

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