Species

BackLeiostyla cheilogona Lowe, 1864

Leiostyla cheilogona Lowe, 1864

  • Kingdom: Animalia
  • Phylum:
  • Class: Mollusca
  • Order: Gastropoda
  • Family: Lauriidae
LC Least Concern
IUCN Red List Status:

Countries of Occurrence:
Portugal - Madeira

Archipelago(s):
Madeira

Assessor/s:
Seddon, M.B.

Reviewer/s:
Cameron, R., Groh, K., Abreu, C., Cuttelod, A. & Neubert, E.

Contributor/s:

Facilitators / Compilers/s:


Assessment Rationale:

This species is endemic to the Madeiran islands, where it has a fairly restricted range, but it is known through over seven different valleys in more than 16 sites, and is currently considered to be stable. The species requires well-shaded habitats, so measures that protect Laurisilva forest will benefit the species. Habitat monitoring is required at known sites to identify future changes in habitat quality, as at present the species is not threatened, but it has a restricted range, that could be vulnerable to declines if habitat quality declines in future.
Seddon (2008) suggested the species should be listed as Near Threatened, however discussions during evaluation reveal that it may be present at other sites in these valleys, and stable in most sites, so it is now listed as Least Concern (LC), as levels of threats are currently unlikely to lead to extinction given the populations within protected areas.

Geographic Range:

This species is endemic to the Madeiran islands, where it is known from the northern central mountains and western parts of the main island, where it is mainly found at intermediate elevations (Seddon 2008).

Regions:
Portugal - Madeira
Extent of Occurrence (EOO):
(km2)
Area of Occupancy (AOO):
60 (km2)
Elevation Lower Limit:
(m)
Elevation Upper Limit:
(m)
Biogeographic Realms:
Palearctic
Presence:
Extant
Origin:
Endemic Madeira
Seasonality:
Resident

Population:

There is no population trend data for this species, although it is probably stable, as the majority of the habitats are in protected areas or inaccessible areas.

Habitat and Ecology

This species is found in damp, shaded places, usually in laurisilva woodland, often on fronds of ferns and amongst leaf-litter, and near shaded crags and rocky areas (Seddon 2008).

Major Threat(s):

Some of the habitat is in the central part of the island within the Natural Park protected area and as such the declining quality of habitat has been stopped, and as the major threat is loss of habitat, the species is considered to be less threatened than other taxa, as it is present in more valleys, and needs shaded, damp habitats, which can be provided by a variety of trees in addition to Laurisilva.

Conservation Actions

The species requires well-shaded habitats, so measures that protect Laurisilva forest will benefit the species. Habitat monitoring is required at known sites to identify future changes in habitat quality, as at present the species is not threatened, but it has a restricted range, that could be vulnerable to declines if habitat quality declines in future.