(DRAFT) - Taxonomy
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

TAXONOMY

NAME - SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE

OTHER COMMON NAMES - SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE;DISK and PAINTED

ELEMENT CODE -

CATEGORY - Aquatic Molluscs

PHYLUM AND SUBPHYLUM - MOLLUSCA,

CLASS AND SUBCLASS - GASTROPODA,

ORDER AND SUBORDER - STYLOMMATOPHORA,

FAMILY AND SUBFAMILY - DISCIDAE,

GENUS AND SUBGENUS - ANGUISPIRA,

SPECIES AND SSP - PICTA,

SCIENTIFIC NAME - ANGUISPIRA PICTA

AUTHORITY -

TAXONOMY REFERENCES -

COMMENTS ON TAXONOMY -
Painted Snake Coiled Forest Snail

Anguispira picta (Clapp, 1920)

KINGDOM: Animal GROUP: Snail

PHYLUM: Mollusca CLASS: Gastropoda
ORDER: Stylommatophora FAMILY: Discidae

Anguispira picta (Clapp, 1920) has a strongly depressed,
dome-shaped shell with a sharp, perfectly smooth, white carina.
Adults vary from 17 to 21 mm in width and 9 to 10 mm in height and
have six whorls. The shell has an umbilicus nearly a quarter the
shell diameter and it is so open that all the whorls can be plainly
seen. Ribbing is indistinct, especially on the last whorl. The shell
is dull, opaque in adults, off white to cream in ground color with
chocolate brown blotches on the upper surface. The juveniles have
more colorful (often orange) markings with more translucent shells.
On the lower surface there is a row of large dark blotches along the
carina with a second row of narrow, often faint, flame-like markings
extending into the umbilicus. The animal itself is cream tinted with
orange (01,02,03).
Anguispira picta (02) was described as Pyramidula picta, a
variant of the more widespread species Anguispira cumberlandiana from
Taxonomy - 1 (DRAFT) - Taxonomy
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

the Cumberland Plateau. In 1948, Pilsbry (03) reduced it to a
subspecies of A. cumberlandiana. In 1976 (04) Alan Solem reviewed the
status of A. cumberlandiana. From morphological data, he divided A.
picta off as a separate species. In 1978 this species was listed as
federally threatened under the common name painted snake coiled forest
snail (05). If the American Fisheries Society's standard list of
mollusk common names is accepted, this species will be known as the
painted disk (06).
The type specimen is known from the G.H. Clapp collection
(#7010), presently housed at the Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh (07).
Paratypes were deposited there and at the Museum of Zoology,
University of Michigan (from the Bryant Walker collection) (07). Some
specimens are held in a private collection (08). The paratypes sent
to the Philadelphia Academy are not extant (09).

Taxonomy - 2 (DRAFT) - Status
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

STATUS

Coded Status

Tennessee; State Listed

T: Federal Threatened

COMMENTS ON STATUS -
U.S. STATUSES AND LAWS:
The painted snake coiled forest snail (Anguispira picta) has been
designated a Threatened species pursuant to the Endangered Species Act
of 1973 (50 CFR 17.11; P.L. 93-205, 87 Stat. 884; 16 U.S.C.
1531-1540), as amended. The species has this status wherever found
including the State of Tennessee.
This species is protected by the Lacey Act (P.L. 97-79, as
amended; 16 U.S.C. 3371 et seq.) which makes it unlawful to import,
export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase any wild animal
(alive or dead including parts, products, eggs, or offspring):
(1) in interstate or foreign commerce if taken, possessed,
transported or sold in violation of any State law or
regulation; or
(2) if taken or possessed in violation of any U.S. law,
treaty, or regulation or in violation of Indian tribal law.
It is also unlawful to possess any wild animal (alive or dead
including parts, products, eggs, and offspring) within the U.S.
territorial or special maritime jurisdiction (as defined in
18 U.S.C. 7) that is taken, possessed, transported, or sold in
violation of any State law or regulation, foreign law, or Indian
tribal law.

RESPONSIBLE FEDERAL AGENCIES:

USFWS -Responsible for the management/recovery, listing, and
law enforcement/protection of this species.

All Federal agencies have responsibility to ensure that any
action authorized, funded, or carried out by that agency is not likely
to jeopardize the continued existence of the species or result in the
destruction or adverse modification of Critical Habitat (50 CFR 402),
and to utilize their authorities to carry out programs for the
conservation of the species.

STATE STATUSES AND LAWS:

STATE: Tennessee
DESIGNATED STATUS: Endangered
ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCY: Wildlife Resource Agency
STATE STATUTES: TN Code Ann., Chapter 9, Sec. 51-901 through
51-912, Proclamations 75-15, 76-4, and
amendments.

Status - 1 (DRAFT) - Status
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

INTERNATIONAL STATUSES, TREATIES, AND AGREEMENTS:
None.

ECONOMIC STATUSES:
This species does not have any cultural or commercial value.
However, this unique species is restricted to a very limited range,
and it has value for aesthetic and scientific reasons.

76/04/28:41 FR 17742/17747 - Proposed rule
78/07/03:43 FR 28932/ - Final rule, listed as Threatened
83/12/08:48 FR 55100/ - Five year review

Status - 2 HABITAT ASSOCIATIONS

HABITAT - TERRESTRIAL
TERRESTRIAL
INLAND AQUATIC

LAND USE -
Cropland and Pasture
Deciduous Forest Land
Streams and Canals
Bare Exposed Rock

NATIONAL WETLAND INVENTORY CODES

NWI NWICLS NWIMOD NWISPEC

Riverine, upper perennial RB2

COMMENTS ON HABITAT ASSOCIATIONS -
Anguispira picta has only been found in a small cove along the
southwest boundary of the Cumberland Plateau (13,01). The sides of
the cove are very steep varying in elevation from about 750 feet to
1700 feet with rock outcrops and sheer cliffs along its length. Much
of the exposed rock is limestone as in the bed of Buck Creek which is
a moderate-sized, perrenial stream bisecting the cove. Because of the
extreme slope, all of the streams cascade over 10 to 20 foot high
waterfalls at intervals (12,01). Buck Creek itself feeds into Crow
Creek just outside the mouth of the cove.
The cove forest of the north-facing slope has not been disturbed
recently and approximates the mixed mesophytic forest that once
covered the entire region (14). The dominant trees include American
beech, shagbark hickory, tulip poplar, white and chinkapin oak, and
sugar maple. The canopy is nearly complete except near the stream
(12). A. picta is found associated with the limestone outcrops, often
hanging under ledges or hidden in crevices (01,12,13). The snails
even occurred on boulders in the stream (01). The snails seemed more
common on the north-facing slope where the forest is more mature and
it is wetter and cooler (01).
A. picta seems to thrive in this area perhaps because of the
dense, mature forest and relatively moist conditions and quantity of
exposed limestone with lichens and plenty of cover. No habitat
differences were noticed between adults and juveniles. The snails
were not found associated with litter or logs at the base of rocks, on
rocks with heavy moss coverings, nor in areas of the cove that had
been logged or used as pasture.

Habitat Associations - 1 (DRAFT) - Food Habits
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

FOOD HABITS

TROPHIC LEVEL -
HERBIVORE

LIFESTAGE FOOD FOOD PART
General Myxomycophyta

Food Habits - 1 (DRAFT) - Environment Associations
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

ENVIRONMENTAL ASSOCIATIONS

G = General A = Adult
LIM = Limiting RA = Resting Adult
J = Juvenile FA = Feeding Adult
RJ = Resting Juvenile BA = Breeding Adult
FJ = Feeding Juvenile P = Pupae
L = Larvae E = Egg
RL = Resting Larvae
FL = Feeding Larvae

LIFESTAGE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSOCIATIONS
G
G Terrestrial Features: Cliffs/ledges
G Terrestrial Features: Rock outcrops

Environment Associations - 1 (DRAFT) - Life History
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

LIFE HISTORY

FOOD HABITS:
Little is known at present about the snail's food preferences or
feeding behavior. The snails are not found in association with logs
or leaf litter but only on rock ledges or large boulders. Observation
indicates they feed on low growing lichens commonly found on the
limestone in the cove (01,13). The snails seemed to avoid rock
surfacs encrusted with heavy growths of moss (01). Juveniles and
adults were both observed "grazing" on the rocks (01,13).

HOME RANGE/TERRITORY:
Some land snails have been shown to stay within a limited home
range (15) but none are known to be strictly territorial. Nothing is
known about this activity in A. picta. There may be some movement
through the year up and down the cliff face and certainly in and out
on the ledges. It must be remembered that the cliff, a crucial part
of the habitat, is a three-dimensional surface which allows the snails
to escape cold weather and drought by retreating deep into the rock
crevices. The adults and young are found together on the ledges
throughout the cove where moisture conditions permit. In a summer of
severe drought, snails were also common on boulders in the creek
itself.

PERIODICITY:
A. picta seems to have no daily periodicity though other
Anguispira species in general are known to be strongly diurnal (16).
Most of the juveniles found day or night were inactive and strongly
adherent to the rock surfaces. Some adults were moving about
"foraging" both day and night. It is likely that wet weather
encourages activity while drought or cold decreases it (01). Snails
have been observed in the open during the height of summer and on warm
days well into November. They undoubtably go under cover
(underground?) in the winter months (01,12).

MIGRATION PATTERNS:
The only migration known for this species would be from the
surface of the rocks to the depths of the crevices. This movement
certainly occurs seasonally but may be more common (01).

COVER/SHELTER REQUIREMENTS:
The snails occur only in a single cove. Apparently limestone
rock ledges, mature forest affording deep shade, and sufficient
moisture are habitat requirements. A. picta was frequently found out
on the rock surface or under overhanging slabs of rock. Dead shells
were found in the leaf litter or soil at the bases of outcrops or in
areas of the cove that had been recently logged (01).

REPRODUCTIVE SITE REQUIREMENTS:
Nothing is known about the reproductive site requirements of this
species (01).

REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS:
Life History - 1 (DRAFT) - Life History
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

Most land snails are hermaphrodites having both male and female
reproductive tracts within a single body. However, self-fertilization
is rare, the snails "preferring" to copulate with the reciprocal
exchange of some type of spermatophore. Copulation is commonly
preceded by a courtship display. Fertilization occurs internally and
results in the production of jelly-like eggs. Development is direct
so the young hatch out of the egg as small adults (shells have fewer
whorls) (17). Anguispira (16) are known to deposit clutches of small
eggs with calcareous shells covered by thin membranes in the soil
(18).
During July 1981 several size classes of this species (from 4 mm
to 20 mm shell width) were present - so reproduction was occurring.
The spread of sizes probably means some eggs had hatched that spring
and summer (01). Sexual maturity may come as early as a year to a
year and a half after hatching (16).

PARENTAL CARE:
These snails are not known to exhibit any parental care (01).

POPULATION BIOLOGY:
Within its small habitat, the population is thought to be stable,
for no one size class predominates. The eggs are being laid and
hatching; the juveniles growing and maturing; the adults reproducing
(01). Land snails may live as long as 3 to 10 years (17). Solem (13)
estimated a population of 2000 individuals but underestimated the
amount of appropriate habitat so this number is conservative (01).

SPECIES INTERRELATIONSHIPS:
Lichens are the sole food source (01,13). Probable predators
are Haplotrema concavum and some Zonitid snails, while possible
predators include small mammals and carabid and/or lampyrid beetle
larvae (01,16). Anguispira alternata crassa, Stenotrema spinosum, and
Aneides aeneus (a salamander) are competitors for shelter (01).

OTHER LIFE HISTORY DESCRIPTORS:
None.

Life History - 2 (DRAFT) - Management Practices
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

RESULT MANAGEMENT PRACTICE

Beneficial Suppressing wildfire
Beneficial Controlling/Restricting Mining
Beneficial Maintaining undisturbed/undeveloped areas
Beneficial Land Acquisition
Beneficial Controlling/Restricting Agricultural Practice
Beneficial Restricting Timber Harvest
Adverse Groundwater drawdown
Existing Groundwater drawdown
Adverse Grazing
Existing Grazing
Adverse Forest Alteration
Existing Forest Alteration
Adverse Harvesting
Existing Harvesting

COMMENTS ON MANAGEMENT PRACTICES -
Anguispira picta has a very restricted range, having been found
only in one cove. Any place within the cove where the forest has been
cleared or thinned recently, no live snails are found (01). Clearing
the forest seems to reduce the available moisture. Crow Creek was
channelized in the 1970's resulting, some thought, in a general
drawdown of the water table. Also the area has suffered drought in
the last several years, so any further disturbance of the stream
itself is a threat to the snail (10). All the land is in private
hands. The owners of the land at the mouth of the cove have taken an
interest in their unique area (refusing to sell timber and mineral
rights to commercial interests) though they still cut firewood and
graze cattle in parts of the cove. The owners have been approached by
the Nature Conservancy, but have refused to sell or lease their land
for a preserve. Much of the upper reaches of the cove is owned by an
estate currently being probated (11). The mineral rights for this
property have already been purchased by an outsider (12).
Lumbering activities are a very obvious threat, though limestone
quarrying (which occurs nearby), forest fires or livestock grazing are
also potential problems (01). Solem (13) considers this a population
in a "thin" habitat which could easily be disturbed by overcollecting.

APPROVED PLAN:
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1982. Painted Snake Coiled Forest
Snail Recovery Plan. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Atlanta, GA
26 pp.

Recovery actions for the painted snake coiled forest snail
include:

(1) Continue to utilize existing legal mechanisms to protect the
species and its habitat. Utilize land acquisition, conservation
Management Practices - 1 (DRAFT) - Management Practices
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

easements, land donation, cooperative agreements and/or other means.

(2) Work with private land owners to ensure protection for the
habitat.

(3) Assess and monitor the population and its habitat.

(4) Determine if other populations exist.

(5) Determine present and forseeable threats to the species. These
may include overcollection, logging, overgrazing, forest fires, and
quarrying.

The Tennessee Chapter of the Nature Conservancy has been working
with landowners to get protective agreements for the snail.

Management Practices - 2 (DRAFT) - References
Species SNAIL, COILED FOREST, PAINTED SNAKE
Species Id ESIS354002
Date 13 MAR 96

References

***** REFERENCES FOR ALL NARRATIVES EXCEPT N-OCCURRENCE *****

01 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1982. Recovery Plan for the
Painted Snake Coiled Forest Snail. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Atlanta, GA.
02 Clapp, G.H. 1920. A new species of Pyramidula from Alabama and
notes on P. cumberlandiana with new varieties. Nautilus 34:23-26.
03 Pilsbry, H.A. 1948. Land Mollusca of North America (North of
Mexico). Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. Monogr. 3(2):part 2.
04 Solem, A. 1976. Species criteria in Anguispira
(Pulmonata:Discidae). Nautilus 90(1):15-23.
05 Federal Register. 1978. Determination that Anguispira picta is a
threatened species. 43:128.
06 Turgion, D.D. 1984. Personal communication. U.S. Dept. Comm.,
Nat. Marine Fish. Serv., Wash., D.C. 20235.
07 Tripp, J.J. 1984. Personal communication. Carnegie Mus. Nat.
Hist., 4400 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15213.
08 Bogan, A. 1984. Personal communication. Malacology Div., Acad.
Nat. Sci., 19th and the Parkway, Logan Circle, Philadelphia, PA
19103.
09 Van Devender, A.S. 1984. Personal communication. Route 4
Box 441, Boone, NC 28607.
10 Willis, B. 1981. Personal communication. Route 1, Sherwood, TN
37376.
11 The Nature Conservancy. Tennessee Field Office, 2020 Capitol Blvd.
Building, Nashville, TN 37219.
12 Smith, T. 1980. Potential preserve site summary - Buck Creek
Cove. Tenn. Field Off., Nature Conservancy.
13 Solem, A. 1974. Final report of Endangered status of eastern
United States land snails. Off. Endang. Spec., U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service.
14 Braun, E.L. 1967. Deciduous Forests of Eastern North America.
Hafner Publishing Co., NY.
15 Blinn, W.C. 1963. Ecology of the land snails Mesodon thyroidius
and Allongona profunda. Ecology 44(3):498-505.
16 Ewell, A.S. and M.J. Ulmer. 1971. Notes on the biology of
Anguispira alternata (Stylommatophora:Endodontidae). Malacologia
11(1):199-215.
17 Hyman, L.H. 1967. The Invertebrates: Volume VI, Mollusca I.
McGraw-Hill Book Company, NY.
18 Tompa, A. 1981. Personal communication. Mollusd Div., Mus.
Zoology, Univ. Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109.

***** REFERENCES FOR N-OCCURRENCE NARRATIVE ONLY *****

03 Solem, A. 1974. Final report of Endangered status of eastern
United States land snails. Office of Endang. Spec., U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service.
04 Parker, W. and L. Dixon. 1980. Endangered and Threatened wildlife
of Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. N.C.
Ext. Serv.
05 Smith, T. 1980. Potential preserve site summary - Buck Creek
Cove. Tenn. Field Off., Nature Conservancy.
06 The Nature Conservancy, Tennessee Field Office, 2020 Capitol Blvd.
Building, Nashville, TN 37219.

References - 2