Exploring land snails’ response to habitat characteristics and their potential as bioindicators of riparian forest quality

Taxonomic and functional diversity of land snails reflects habitat complexity in riparian forests

“…Some authors have reported a decrease in snail abundance and species richness in invaded plots 48 , while others have found increased species richness and abundance 49 . Our previous study had not shown any effect of allochthonous invasive plant species on riparian snail communities 36 . The response of land snail communities to exotic species seem to depend on the invasive plant species, more probably indirectly affecting the snails, through changes in vegetation structure and subsequent changes in microclimate 50 .…”

“…In riparian forests, the more complex vertical stratification increases the shade, preserves humidity, and generates litter and dead wood, favoring the presence of snails. The importance of leaf litter and woody debris microhabitats for forest snails was documented by many studies [e.g., 36 , 44 – 47 ]. Many snails, especially micro snails, are litter dwellers, while other species use coarse woody debris to shelter from climatic extremes and feed on bacteria, algae, and fungi growing on decaying wood.…”

“…The presence of dead wood significantly increased the functional diversity of the snail community. Surrounding habitats can contribute with species to the riparian snail community, the contribution being more significant when the two involved habitats are similar, as in the case of riparian forest and other remnant forest patches 36 . Ruderal lands, with bushes and tall herb vegetation that settles there, can also represent favorable habitats for some species of snails, extending the area with suitable conditions beyond the forest edge.…”

“…The vegetation was considered as the most important feature in assessing habitat heterogeneity in most of the studies regarding riparian forests 7 , 35 , 36 . The riparian forest in the area of study is a multilayer forest, each layer contributing to the vertical structure of the forest, maintaining the shade and humidity, and supplying the litter layer, crucial elements for the land snail presence and abundance.…”

Mycophagy and feeding on other native land snails by the black snail Macrocyclis peruvianus (Gastropoda, Macrocyclidae)

“…Caldwell (1996) and Parkyn et al (2015) emphasize that decaying wood on the forest floor has a strong relationship with land snails because they can passively inoculate other deadwoods with fungi spores after consuming the mushrooms. In addition, land snail richness, abundance, and diversity are positively influenced by decaying deadwood and/or leaf litter as structural key elements of the forest floor (Gheoca et al, 2021;Kappes et al, 2006;Müller et al, 2005). Therefore, further studies must focus on habitat characteristics that can determine the occurrence and ecosystem services of M. peruvianus in the southern temperate forests.…”