A Field Guide to the Snails of Lord Howe Island

89 Mt Lidgbird. Closely related subspecies G. sophiae magnifica is found on the summits of Mt Gower and Mt Lidgbird and on Little Slope. Found in litter. Remarks. This species has always been recorded in abundance, but numbers appear to have diminished since 2002, and to have noticeably declined during the period 2016-2019. This may be due to repeated dry summers, to the increasing pressure of rat predation or to the feeding of these snails on rodent baits used in pulse baiting. It is also possible that the unusually dry weather in 2016-2019 has depressed detectability and that the numbers are not as low as they appear. We hope to see an improvement following the 2019 rodent eradication. Gudeoconcha sophiae magnifica Iredale, 1944 Magnificent Glass Snail Shell. Size: H = 18.1-21.4 mm, D = 30.5-38.4 mm. Colour: Yellow- brown with a greenish tint, not glossy. Shape: Depressedly turbinate with a low, conical spire, whorl profile rounded above and below a slightly angulate periphery. Sculpture: Protoconch smooth; teleoconch sculptured with microscopic spiral grooves and strong radial growth lines. Aperture: Ovately lunate. Umbilicus: Closed by reflection of columella. Animal. Dark brown with paler brown markings and dark brown spots on sides of tail (juveniles black). Three colour bands on neck: black bands leading to eyestalks and central dark brown band. Caudal horn small. Shell lappets narrow, short to very short, shell lobes moderately small. Gudeoconcha sophiae magnifica