Monadenia fidelis

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| taxon = Monadenia fidelis

| authority = (J. E. Gray, 1834)

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Monadenia fidelis, commonly known as the Pacific sideband, is a medium-sized species of air-breathing land snail. M. fidelis is a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Monadeniidae.

These snails display a great deal of morphological variation: the shell of the Pacific sideband typically has a chestnut brown base, with bands of yellow, dark brown, and red. The body of the animal is rosy or purplish brown, with gray or black throughout.{{Cite journal |last=Brown |first=Darren |last2=Durand |first2=Ryan |date=December 20, 2007 |title=Habitat assessment of the Pacific sideband (Monadenia fidelis) in the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia |url=http://www.sccp.ca/sites/default/files/species-habitat/documents/Pacific%20sideband%20habitat%20requirements_Brown&Durand%2007.pdf |journal=Fraser Valley Conservancy Society}} This species of snail reproduces using love darts.{{Cite journal |last=Porter |first=Clarence |date=May 15, 1964 |title=The morphology of the reproductive tracts of the Pacific Northwest pulmonates |url=https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/downloads/f7623h07c |journal=Oregon State University}} At 22 to 36 mm wide, it is the largest land snail species in the state of Washington.{{cite web |title=Monadenia fidelis |url=http://academic.evergreen.edu/projects/ants/TESCBiota/mollusc/key/mon_fid/mon_fid.htm |accessdate=2007-06-24 |work=Evergreen Biota |publisher=The Evergreen State College}}

Distribution

M. fidelis is endemic to the Pacific Coast of North America, and is found in California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska. There is a significant amount of morphological variation among individuals of this species, and several distinct subspecies are recognized. While populations of this snail display distinct morphotypes, recent research in genomics indicates that there is gene flow between recognized subspecies, and even between M. fidelis and other species in the genus Monadenia.{{Cite journal |last=Oswald |first=Jessica |last2=Roth |first2=Barry |last3=Faske |first3=Trevor |last4=Allen |first4=Julie |last5=Mestre |first5=Cathleen |last6=Rivers-Pankratz |first6=Darci |last7=Van Norman |first7=Kelli |last8=Guralnick |first8=Robert |date=23 November 2021 |title=Population genomics of Monadenia (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora: Xanthonychidae) land snails reveals structuring but gene‑flow across distinct species and morphotypes |doi=10.1007/s10592-021-01410-w |journal=Conservation Genetics |volume=23 |pages=299–311}}

M. fidelis is commonly found in low elevation wet coastal forests, but is found in non-forested and urban areas as well. It is most common in deciduous and mixed forests, but can occasionally be found in coniferous forests.

References

[https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=77813 ITIS: Monadenia fidelis]

External links

{{Commons category-inline|Monadenia fidelis}}

Category:Monadenia

Category:Gastropods described in 1834

Category:Endemic fauna of the Pacific Northwest

Category:Taxa named by John Edward Gray