Phantom cave snail

The phantom cave snail or phantom cavesnail (Pyrgulopsis texana) is a species of very small freshwater snail with an operculum, an aquatic gastropod in the family Hydrobiidae.

Phantom cave snail
Conservation status
Vulnerable  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Endangered (ESA)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Littorinimorpha
Family:	Hydrobiidae
Genus:	Pyrgulopsis
Species:	P. texana
Binomial name
Pyrgulopsis texana (Pilsbry, 1935)
Synonyms[3]
Cochliopa texana Pilsbry, 1935

Distribution

This species is endemic to the lower Pecos River basin, Texas, the United States.^[3]

Genus transfer

When originally described in 1935, the phantom cave snail was assigned to the genus Cochliopa. Following a detailed examination of shell and anatomical characteristics along with genetic sequencing it was transferred to the genus Pyrgulopsis in 2010.^[3]