Tandonia rustica

Tandonia rustica is a species of air-breathing, keeled, land slug, a shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusk in the family Milacidae.

Tandonia rustica
Photo:Francisco Welter Schultes
Slug shells of Tandonia rustica.Photo:Francisco Welter Schultes
NE
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Heterobranchia
clade Euthyneura
clade Panpulmonata
clade Eupulmonata
clade Stylommatophora
informal group Sigmurethra
clade limacoid clade
Superfamily:
Parmacelloidea
Family:
Milacidae
Genus:
Tandonia
Species:
T. rustica
Binomial name
Tandonia rustica
(Millet, 1843)
Synonyms

Limax rustica Millet, 1843
Milax sowerbii var. rustica

Description

70 mm.- 100 mm. long whitish In colour creamy or reddish to yellowish grey with numerous black dots . The mantle is 40% of body length (preserved specimens) . The mantle is granular with a deep but not conspicuous horseshoe-shaped groove with black streaks. The breathing pore has a pale rim. The keel is yellowish to white. The sole is cream.

The penis and epiphallus form a single long cylindrical organ: penis with a swelling anteriorly, inside with a richly ornamented papilla, epiphallus obviously longer than penis. ,The vas deferens opens symmetrically, the spermatheca is elongate with a sharp pointed end, its duct slightly shorter and with a swelling half-way. The vagina is not much wider than the oviduct, accessory glands are compact duct-like canals, surrounding and opening to the anterior end of the vagina, The atrium is short.(Francisco Welter Schultes)

Description

This is a keeled slug.

Distribution

This slug is native to Europe.

This species has not yet become established in the USA, but it is considered to represent a potentially serious threat as a pest, an invasive species which could negatively affect agriculture, natural ecosystems, human health or commerce. Therefore, it has been suggested that this species be given top national quarantine significance in the USA.[3]

Habitat

Deciduous and mixed forests on mountain slopes with limestone rock rubble, also in open habitats on calcareous soils.

References
  1. 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Cited 13 August 2008.
  2. "Anemoon > Flora en Fauna > Soorteninformatie". www.anemoon.org.
  3. Cowie R. H., Dillon R. T., Robinson D. G. & Smith J. W. (2009). "Alien non-marine snails and slugs of priority quarantine importance in the United States: A preliminary risk assessment". American Malacological Bulletin 27: 113-132. PDF Archived 2016-06-16 at the Wayback Machine.
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