Here we deal with two different lines of evolutionary adaptation of holoplanktonic gastropods. Only a small proportion of gastropods spend their entire life cycle as part of the plankton; these include forms contained in two subclasses of Gastropoda: the Prosobranchia and the Opisthobranchia. The former are represented by the Superfamily Heteropoda, and opisthobranchs by the orders Thecosomata and Gymnosomata. Of these two orders, we considered only the two suborders of Thecosomata: Euthecosomata and Pseudothecosomata, both widely known under the informal name of Pteropoda. This revision updates the knowledge about the taxonomic composition and distribution of the species of pteropods and heteropods recorded in both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of Costa Rica. In general, it was found that investigations on the Costa Rican pelagic gastropods have been quite scarce and the literature on adjacent areas is scattered. The number of heteropod species effectively recorded in the Pacific coast of Costa Rica (16 spp.) versus the worldwide known species represents about 44%; the figure is 60% with respect to the Eastern Pacific. There are only three records of heteropods in the Caribbean Sea off Costa Rica, the corresponding proportional figures are 10% worldwide, 12% Northwestern Atlantic Ocean. As for pteropods, the percentage of species effectively recorded in the Pacific coast of Costa Rica versus the worldwide known species is low: 7%. The proportion is higher (36%) with reference to the Eastern Pacific. Only nine species of pteropods have been reported in the Costa Rican Caribbean (17% of the Northwestern Atlantic; 4.7% worldwide). Comments are also provided on the relevance of the group and the methodological problems involved in the taxonomic study of these organisms.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Abbott RT (1974) American Seashells. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 663 p
Beese D (1995) Zur Rekonstruktion des Paläoklimas im Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica, anhand der stabilen Isotopenverhältnisse in Foraminiferen- und Pteropodenschalen. Diplomarbeit Teil 2 (Laborarbeit), Fachbereich Geowissenschaften, Univ. Bremen, 41 p
Biekart JW (1989) Euthecosomatous pteropods as paleo-hydrological and paleoecological indicators in a Tyrrhenian deep sea core. Palaeogeogr, Palaeoclim, Palaeoecol 71:205–224
Biggs DC, Zimmerman RG, Gasca R, Suárez-Morales E, Castellanos I (1997) Note on plankton and cold-core rings in the Gulf of Mexico. Fish Bull 95:369–375
Castellanos I, Suárez-Morales E (2001) Heteropod molluscs (Carinariidae and Pterotracheidae) of the Gulf of Mexico and the western Caribbean Sea. An Inst Biol, Univ Nac Autón Méx, Ser Zool 72:221–232
Chen C, Hillman N (1970) Shell bearing pteropods as indicators of water masses off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Bull Mar Sci Gulf Carib 20:350–367
Cruz M (1998) Gastrópodos planctónicos (Pteropoda y Heteropoda) como bioindicadores de los eventos “El Niño” 1992 y 1997–98 en la estación fija “La Libertad”, Ecuador. Acta Oceanogr Pacíf 9:12–18
Dales RP (1953) The distribution of some heteropod mollucks off the Pacific coast of North America. Proc Zool Soc London 122:1007–1015
Dall WH (1909) Report on a collection of shells from Peru, with a summary of the littoral marine Mollusca of the Peruvian Zoological Province. Proc US Nat Mus 37:147–294
Fernández-Alamo MA (1989) Una aportación al conocimiento del zooplancton del Golfo de California. Mem. VII Simp Int Biol Mar: 17–22
Gasca R (1992) Heterópodos (Mollusca: Gastropoda; Atlantidae) de la Bahía de la Ascensión, Reserva de la Biosfera de Sian Ka'an, Quintana Roo, México. In: Navarro D, Suárez-Morales E (eds) Diversidad Biológica en la Reserva de la Biosfera de Sian Ka'an, Quintana Roo, México. II. CIQRO/SEDESOL, México, pp 115–122
Gasca R, Suárez-Morales E (1992) Pterópodos (Mollusca: Gastropoda; Thecosomata) de la Bahía de la Ascensión, Reserva de la Biosfera de Sian Ka'an, Quintana Roo, México. In: Navarro D, Suárez-Morales E (eds) Diversidad Biológica en la Reserva de la Biosfera de Sian Ka'an, Quintana Roo, México. II. CIQRO/ SEDESOL, México, pp 123–127
González LA, Princz D (1979) Moluscos heterópodos y pterópodos de la zona central del Caribe venezolano. Bol Inst Oceanogr, Univ Oriente 18:99–107
Haagensen DA (1976) Caribbean zooplankton. Part II. Thecosomata. Office of Naval Research, Dept. Navy, Washington, DC, pp 551–712
Keen AM (1971) Sea shells of tropical West America: marine mollusks from Baja California to Peru. Stanford University Press, Stanford,1064 p
Lalli CM, Gilmer RW (1989) Pelagic snails. The biology of holoplanktonic Gastropod mollusks. Stanford University Press, Stanford, 259 p
Lewis JB (1962) Notes on the Barbados ‘sea egg’. J Barbados Mus Hist Soc 30:1–3
Matsubara JA (1975) Sistemática, distribución, abundancia y relaciones ambientales de los pterópodos tecosomados de la Bahía de Campeche, México. Tesis Prof., Fac. Ciencias, UNAM, México, 52 p
McGowan JA (1967) Distributional atlas of pelagic mollusks in the California Current region. CalCOFI Atlas 6:1–218
McGowan JA (1968) The Thecosomata and Gymnosomata of California. Veliger 3:103–129
Meisenheimer J (1905) Pteropoda. Wiss Ergebn dt Tiefsee-Exped “Valdivia” 9:1–314
Michel HB, Foyo M (1976) Caribbean zooplankton. Part. 1. Siphonophora, Heteropoda, Copepoda, Euphausiacea, Chaetognatha and Salpidae. Off. Naval Res., Washington DC, 549 p
Michel HB, Michel JF (1991) Heteropod and thecosome (Mollusca: Gastropoda) macroplankton in the Florida Straits. Bull Mar Sci 49:563–574
Richter G (1961) Die Radula der Atlantiden (Heteropoda, Prosobranchia) und ihre Bedeutung fü die Systematik und Evolution der Familie. Zeitschr Morphol ÖTiere 50:163–238
Richter G (1968) Heteropoden und Heteropodenlarven im Oberflächenplankton des Golfes von Neapel. Publ Staz Zool Napoli 36:347–400
Richter G (1972) Zur Kenntnis der Gattung Atlanta (Heteropoda: Atlantidae). Arch Molluskenkd 102:85–91
Richter G (1974) Die Heteropoden der “Meteor” Expedition in der Indischen Ozean 1964/65. “Meteor” Forschungsergeb. (D) 17:55–78
Richter G (1986) Zur Kenntnis der Gattung Atlanta, 2. Atlanta lesueuri Souleyet und Atlanta oligogyra Tesch (Prosobranchai: Heteropoda). Arch Molluskenkd 117:19–31
Richter G (1987) Zur Kenntnis der Gattung Atlanta, 3. Atlanta inflata, Atlanta helicinoides, A. echinogyra und Atlanta plana (Prosobranchai: Heteropoda). Arch Molluskenkd 117:177–201
Richter G, Seapy RR (1999) Heteropoda. In: Boltovskoy D (ed) South Atlantic Zooplankton. Backhuys, Leiden, The Netherlands, pp 621–647
Ríos EC (1985) Seashells of Brazil. Fundaçao Cidade do Rio Grande, Fundaçao Universidade do Rio Grande, Museu Oceanográfico, Rio Grande, RS, 328 p
Rodríguez SL, Vargas R, Cortés J (2003) Biodiversidad marina de Costa Rica: gastrópodos de la costa Caribe (Mollusca: Gastropoda). Rev Biol Trop 51(Suppl 3):305–399
Sánchez-Hidalgo y Anda M (1989) Gasterópodos holoplanctónicos de la costa occidental de Baja California Sur, en mayo y junio de 1984. Inv Mar CICIMAR 4:1–14
Sánchez-Nava S (1984) Sistemática, distribución y abundancia de los moluscos pelágicos (Gastropoda: Pteropoda y Heteropoda) en el Domo de Costa Rica. Tesis Prof., Fac. Ciencias, UNAM, 180 p
Sánchez-Nava S, Segura-Puertas L (1987) Los moluscos pelágicos (Gastropoda: Heteropoda y Pteropoda) recolectados en el domo de Costa Rica y regiones adyacentes. Mem Soc Mex Malacol 3:232–240
Seapy RR (1974) Distribution and abundance of the epipelagic mollusk Carinaria japonica in waters off southern California. Mar Biol 24:243–250
Seapy RR (1987) The heteropod fauna of oceanic waters off Hawaii. Western Soc Malacol Ann Rep 19:9–12
Seapy RR (1990) The pelagic Family Atlantidae (Gastropoda: Heteropoda) from Hawaiian waters: a faunistic survey. Malacologia 32:107–130
Seapy RR, Richter G (1993) Atlanta californiensis, a new species of atlantid heteropod (Mollusca: Gastropoda) from the California Current. Veliger 36:389–398
Suárez-Morales E (1994) Distribución de los pterópodos (Gastropoda: Thecosomata y Pseudothecosomata) del Golfo de México y zonas adyacentes. Rev Biol Trop 42:523–530
Suárez-Morales E, Gasca R (1992) Pterópodos (Gastropoda: Thecosomata y Pseudothecosomata) del estrato superficial (0–50 m) del sur del Golfo de México. An Inst Cienc Mar Limnol, UNAM 19:199–207
Suárez-Morales E, Gasca R (1998) Thecosome pteropod (Gastropoda) assemblages of the Mexican Caribbean Sea (1991). Nautilus 112:43–51
Taylor D, Berner L (1970) The Heteropoda (Mollusca: Gastropoda). In: Pequegnat WE, Chace FA (eds) Contributions on the Biology of the Gulf of Mexico. Texas A&M Univ. Oceanogr. Stud. 1, pp 231–244
Tesch JJ (1909) Systematic monograph of the Atlantidae (Heteropoda) with enumeration of the species in the Leiden Museum. Not Leiden Mus 30:1–30
Tesch JJ (1948) The thecosomatous pteropods. II. The Indo-Pacific. Dana Rep 30:1–44
Tesch JJ (1949) Heteropoda. Dana Rep 34:1–55
Tokioka T (1955) On some plankton animals collected by the Syunkoto Maru in May-Jun, 1954. Thecosomattous Pteropoda. Publ Seto Mar Biol Lab 5:59–74
Van der Spoel S (1967) Euthecosomata, a group with remarkable developmental stages (Gastropoda, Pteropoda). Gorichem. J. Noorduijn, 375 p
Van der Spoel S (1972) Notes on the identification and speciation of Heteropoda (Gastropoda). Zool Meded, Leiden 47:545–560
Van der Spoel S (1976) Pseudothecosomata, Gymnosomata and Heteropoda (Gastropoda). Bohn, Scheltema and Holkema, Utrecht,484 p
Van der Spoel S (1996a) Heteropoda. In: Gasca R, Suárez-Morales E (eds) Introducción al Estudio del Zooplancton Marino. ECOSUR/ CONACYT, México, pp 407–457
Van der Spoel S (1996b) Pteropoda. In: Gasca R, Suárez-Morales E (eds) Introducción al Estudio del Zooplancton Marino. ECOSUR/ CONACYT, México, pp 459–528
Van der Spoel S, Boltovskoy D (1981) Pteropoda. In: Boltovskoy D (ed) Atlas del zooplancton del Atlántico Sudoccidental y métodos de trabajo con el zooplancton marino. Publ. Esp. INIDEP, Mar del Plata, Argentina, pp 493–531
Van der Spoel S, Dadón JR (1999) Pteropoda. In: Boltovskoy D (ed) South Atlantic Zooplankton. Backhuys, Leiden, The Netherlands, pp 650–706
Velázquez LE, Lozano F (1987) Algunos pterópodos Euthecosomata (Mollusca: Opistobranchia) de la Bahía de Gaira, Santa Marta (Caribe Colombiano). An Inst Inv Punta Betín 17:81–85
Vicencio-Aguilar ME, Fernádez-Alamo MA (1996) Zooplancton del Domo de Costa Rica: taxonomía y biogeografía. Rev Biol Trop 44:631–642
Wells FE (1975) Comparison of euthecosomatous pteropods in the plankton and sediments off Barbados, West Indies. Proc Malac Soc London 41:503–509
Wells FE (1976) Seasonal patterns of abundance and reproduction of euthecosomatous pteropods off Barbados, West Indies. Veliger 18:241–248
Wormelle RL (1962) A survey of the standing crop of plankton of the Florida Current. VI. A study of the distribution of the pteropods of the Florida Current. Bull Mar Sci Gulf Carib 12:95–136
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer Science + Business Media B.V.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Suárez-Morales, E., Gasca, R., Castellanos, I. (2009). Pelagic Gastropods. In: Wehrtmann, I.S., Cortés, J. (eds) Marine Biodiversity of Costa Rica, Central America. Monographiae Biologicae, vol 86. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-8278-8_32
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-8278-8_32
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-8277-1
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-8278-8
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)