Neritona granosa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Neritona granosa |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| (unranked): |
clade Neritimorpha
clade Cycloneritimorpha |
| Superfamily: |
Neritoidea
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| Family: |
Neritidae
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| Subfamily: |
Neritininae
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| Tribe: |
Neritinini
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| Genus: |
Neritona
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| Species: |
N. granosa
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| Binomial name | |
| Neritona granosa (Sowerby I, 1825)
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| Synonyms | |
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The Neritona granosa is a special type of freshwater snail. It's an aquatic mollusk that lives in water. This snail belongs to a family called Neritidae, also known as nerites. It has a little "door" called an operculum that can close its shell.
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Where They Live
These snails, also known as hīhīwai, live in streams. Once they find a good spot, they tend to stay there. They really like streams that flow all the time. You can often find them in the lower or middle parts of a stream.
Hīhīwai used to live all over Hawaii. But lately, their homes have been shrinking. This is because streams are being changed by people. Now, these snails are found in fewer than 50 streams.
What They Look Like
The Neritona granosa snail has a shell with a bumpy surface. Its shell has two different colors. The outside of the shell is black. The inside of the shell is a bright orange color.
Snail Life in Streams
Neritona granosa snails live in streams. But their babies are born in the ocean! These tiny larvae (baby snails) float around in the ocean for a while. Then, they travel from the ocean back into streams and move upstream.
This means that baby snails can travel across the ocean between the main Hawaiian Islands. This helps them settle in streams on different islands.
Cultural Importance
In Hawaii, this snail has two names: "wī" and "hīhīwai". A long time ago, in ancient Hawaii, these snails were an important food source. People also sold their shells. Many of these shells came from the island of Molokai.
Even today, you might sometimes see Neritona granosa snails for sale. They can appear in fish markets in Honolulu.
Conservation Efforts
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed Neritona granosa as a vulnerable species. This means they are at risk of becoming extinct. They probably live in fewer than ten places now, and their numbers are going down.
Historically, these snails lived on Kauai, Maui, Molokai, Hawaii, and Oahu. Today, they are only confirmed on Maui, Hawaii, Kauai, and Oahu. The biggest threats to these snails are things that block natural stream flow. Also, saltwater getting into their freshwater homes is a problem.
Growth and Life Cycle
When they are young, hīhīwai snails can grow quickly. They might grow up to 9 millimeters in just a few months. After this fast start, their growth slows down.
Eventually, they can grow to be about 2 inches long. With this growth pattern, these snails can live for 6 to 10 years.
