Diversity of non-marine mollusks in the southernmost Paranaense forest of the world

Abstract

The Natural Reserve of Punta Lara (RNPL) is a protected natural area that includes Paranaense forest southernmost in the world. This area is surrounded by a densely populated and touristic sector. The objective of this work was to estimate the richness, diversity and equity of the RNPL mollusks (aquatic and terrestrial) and to establish the relationship of their species in aquatic environments. One sampling per year was carried out between 2013 and 2019. There were 32 species recorded (six are non-native species): 23 gastropods (14 freshwater, nine terrestrial) and nine bivalves. Three species were recorded in all sampling years, while six only on one occasion. The land snail genus Drepanostomella is reported for the first time in that region, and five freshwater species are reported for the first time for the RNPL. The similarity analysis of the freshwater environment separated the coastal environments from the internal environments. The environments with the highest specific richness were in internal sites of the RNPL, while the least diverse was the coast of the Río de la Plata, where the invasive species Limnoperna fortunei predominates. It is recommended to increase the conservation efforts of the different environments of the RNPL continuously threatened by urbanization.