Amphicyclotulus dominicensis is a species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 of tropical land snail

Land snail

A land snail is any of the many species of snail that live on land, as opposed to those that live in salt water and fresh water. Land snails are terrestrial gastropod mollusks that have shells, It is not always an easy matter to say which species are terrestrial, because some are more or less...

 with a gill

Gill

A gill is a respiratory organ found in many aquatic organisms that extracts dissolved oxygen from water, afterward excreting carbon dioxide. The gills of some species such as hermit crabs have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are kept moist...

 and an operculum

Operculum (gastropod)

The operculum, meaning little lid, is a corneous or calcareous anatomical structure which exists in many groups of sea snails and freshwater snails, and also in a few groups of land snails...

, a terrestrial

Terrestrial animal

Terrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land , as compared with aquatic animals, which live predominantly or entirely in the water , or amphibians, which rely on a combination of aquatic and terrestrial habitats...

 gastropod mollusk in the family Neocyclotidae

Neocyclotidae

Neocyclotidae is a family of tropical land snails with gills and an operculum, terrestrial gastropod mollusks in the informal group Architaenioglossa belonging to the clade Caenogastropoda .-Subfamilies:Subfamilies within the family Neocyclotidae include:* subfamily Neocyclotinae Kobelt &...

.

Distribution

This species is endemic to the West Indian island of Dominica.

The type locality is Long Dilton, Dominica. The holotype

Holotype

A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...

 is in National Museum of Natural History

National Museum of Natural History

The National Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. Admission is free and the museum is open 364 days a year....

 under number 535857.

Shell description

Amphicyclotulus dominicensis has spiral cords which are clearly visible and raised.

There are only two species in the genus Amphicyclotulus in Dominica. The other species is Amphicyclotulus amethystinus

Amphicyclotulus amethystinus

Amphicyclotulus amethystinus is a species of tropical land snail with a gill and an operculum, a terrestrial gastropod mollusk in the family Neocyclotidae.- Shell description :...

, which has either no spiral threads or ones that are only weakly present.

Amphicyclotulus dominicensis is smaller than the Amphicyclotulus amethystinus. Amphicyclotulus dominicensis is more coarsely sculptured and has a higher spire

Spire (mollusc)

A spire is a descriptive term for part of the coiled shell of mollusks. The word is a convenient aid in describing shells, but it does not refer to a very precise part of shell anatomy: the spire consists of all of the whorls except for the body whorl...

. It has been found on the leeward and windward

Windward and leeward

Windward is the direction upwind from the point of reference. Leeward is the direction downwind from the point of reference. The side of a ship that is towards the leeward is its lee side. If the vessel is heeling under the pressure of the wind, this will be the "lower side"...

sides of the island of Dominica, at low elevations only.