Freshwater Snails in Northern Maine

                                     Searching Gassabias Lake shoreline by Derek J. Moore.

    Lakes in northern Maine are inhabited by many species of freshwater snails. Some are found only in clean deep water lakes in northern Maine. We are studying a rare type of snail, Stagnicola mighelsi (also called Stagnicola emarginata mighelsi) that may be a unique species to Maine. It is similar to another widely distributed species, Stagnicola elodes. We are gathering genetic evidence to determine the relatedness of these two types of snails.

The main investigator on this project is Ken Hotopp of Appalachian Conservation Biology in Bethel, ME. We have been funded by the crowd-sourcing group "Experiment.com" and by Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Ken was previously funded by the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund for snail inventory projects.

(Figure: Judith Roe)                                                                                  (Photo: Judith Roe)                                                           (Photo: Judith Roe)

Field collecting on Long Lake; Marian R. Hotopp, Trenton V. Bonney, and Judith Roe, PhD. (Photo: Ken P Hotopp)