A Field Guide to the Snails of Lord Howe Island

150 Hawaiia miniscula Introduced species - small glossy snails Family Pristilomatidae The Pristilomatidae is a small family of 16 genera distributed in the Northern Hemisphere, South America and Polynesia. Pristilomatids are small, glossy snails with a long, narrow foot. The family Pristilomatidae was previously included within Zonitidae but is currently considered to belong to a separate superfamily, the Gastrodontoidea, along with Gastrodontidae and Oxychilidae. Hawaiia minuscula (Binney, 1840) Minute Gem Snail Shell. Size: H = 1.2-1.6 mm, D = 2.3-2.7 mm. Colour: Translucent white. Shape: Discoidal with a low, conical spire; whorls rounded; sutures strongly impressed to channelled. Sculpture: Teleoconch with radial growth lines. Aperture: Roundly lunate; lip simple or slightly thickened internally. Umbilicus: Widely open. Animal. Not observed. Key distinguishing features. Very small size, glossy white shell, widely open umbilicus. Habitat and occurrence. First recorded on Lord Howe Island in 1887, where it was initially thought to be an endemic species. Found primarily in the Settlement area, in disturbed habitats, but scattered records exist for the other areas as well. Remarks. This species was recorded on both Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island in the late 1800s, and was subsequently introduced into eastern Australia. 2 mm