Mountain-Prairie Region
Endangered Species Program
BLACK HILLS MOUNTAINSNAIL
Photos courtesy Doug Backlund, Pierre, South Dakota
Species Description: The Black Hills mountainsnail (Oreohelix cooperi), is actually the larger of two size morphs of land snail currently considered in scientific literature to be a single subspecies known as Cooper’s Rocky mountainsnail (Oreohelix strigosa cooperi). Recent information suggests the Black Hills mountainsnail should be considered a full species although it has not been described and published in a peer-reviewed publication. The white shell of this terrestrial snail typically has one or more reddish-brown stripes on the rounded outer whorl. The size of the shell may reach 22 mm in diameter and 17 mm in height. Similar to other mountainsnail species in the American West, it is considered an integral part of the Black Hills ecosystem and an indicator of ecosystem health. Because of its presence in relatively intact forest and riparian habitats, its slow movements, and its vulnerability to disturbances or anthropogenic habitat destruction and degradation, the Black Hills mountainsnail is sensitive and responds quickly to the effects of ecological change. The status of the animal therefore provides a window into the overall health of the Black Hills ecosystem, an invaluable relationship that provides innumerable social and environmental benefits.
Location: This mountainsnail is endemic to the forests and riparian habitats of the Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming. Although the Black Hills mountainsnail is most often associated with moist area plant communities, it may also occupy somewhat drier sites relative to other, more hydrophilic snail species of the Black Hills. The snail also requires soils with high calcium levels for shell growth and maintenance and is closely associated with limestone substrates.
Threats: The species is sensitive to habitat destruction and degradation and is vulnerable to the effects of desiccation, or the loss of life sustaining moisture. Recovery after the effects of natural and human-caused disturbances can be slow, depending on the type and degree of disturbance as well as the existence of satellite populations available to recolonize disturbed sites. However the species persists in the Black Hills despite such occurrences as mining, forestry, and fires within its habitats. The majority of its currently known occupied habitat and colonies receive Federal protections from activities generally suspected to be harmful to land snails, such as grazing, logging, mining, home development, and road building.
Recent Actions:
- Federal Register Notice: February 28, 2006 90-day finding on a petition to list the Black Hills mountainsnail as threatened or endangered
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