The scientific names for the new species are Angustopila dominikae, A. fabella, A. subelevata, A. szekeresi, Hypselostoma socialis, H. lacrima and Krobylos sinensis.
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“Extremes in body size of organisms not only attract attention from the public, but also incite interest regarding their adaptation to their environment”, remind the researchers.
Scientists have uncovered the snails while examining soil samples after collecting them from the base of a few limestone rocks in Guangxi Provine is southern China.
It’s incredibly hard to detect such small creatures, but several teeny tiny snail species were discovered in China that shatters at least one record. They found seven empty light grey shells measuring less than a millimetre, with the smallest (Angustopila dominikae) being just 0.86mm in height.
At the opposite end of the scale to the Angustopila dominikae is the giant African snail. Researchers are still in the process of figuring out what the tiny snails feed on or their evolutionary relationship with other terrestrial snail species.
The team hopes the results of their find will provide the taxonomic ground work for future studies concerning the evolution of dwarfism in invertebrates, according to the Daily Record.
Before this discovery, the smallest member of the genus was the Angustopila elevata with a shell height 0.99mm. It likely spends its life on the cliff walls.
Páll-Gergely adds that the investigation of tiny shelled land snails is crucial in the assessment of biodiversity and natural history including establishing the foundation of further studies of the evolution of dwarfism in invertebrate animals.
Scientists have just discovered the world’s smallest land snail in China.
Another new species, Angustopila subelevata, measures only about 0.036 inches (0.91 mm) in height. A similar species, Hypselostoma socialis, is about the same size but has a different shell configuration.
China ranks at top in population of people and also the smallest land snails.
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The researchers also reported more details on the discovery of a not-quite-new tiny snail, Angustopila huoyani. The smallest marine snail, Ammonicera minortalis, grows no bigger than.46 millimeters, and can be as small as.32 millimeters at the widest point of its shell.
