Trinity bristle snail

Monadenia setosa
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Suborder:	Eupulmonata
Infraorder:	Stylommatophora
(unranked):	clade Heterobranchia clade Euthyneura clade Panpulmonata clade Eupulmonata clade Stylommatophora informal group Sigmurethra
Superfamily:	Helicoidea
Family:	Monadeniidae
Genus:	Monadenia
Species:	M. setosa
Binomial name
Monadenia setosa (Talmadge, 1952)

The Trinity bristle snail (Monadenia setosa) (aka Monadenia infumata setosa in Roth and Sadeghian's "Checklist of the Land Snails and Slugs of California") is a species of medium-sized, air-breathing, land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc.

This snail is a threatened species.

Distribution

This species is endemic to California.

Habitat

This snail is found only in isolated locales along the Trinity River and nearby small creeks. It can only survive in cool, wet, shady riparian zones.

Life habits

The common name of this species comes from the fact that it has a coating of minuscule bristles on its inch-wide shell. These bristles often pick up bits of plant matter and dirt as the snail moves around, giving the snail a dirty, fuzzy look.

The Trinity bristle snail is dependent on cool, moist conditions and therefore it is only active at night. It spends warmer parts of the day stuck to shady areas on tree trunks, and in especially warm parts of the summer it may not move for days. When conditions are cool enough it feeds on lichen and the tender parts of green plants. The snail has a lifespan of over ten years, and may not reach full size for nearly that long.

Survival threats

Human encroachment, including logging, mining, and damming, have reduced the snail's habitat to a few patches deep in the forest.

References

• ITIS: Monadenia setosa