MBP - Crested Mudalia (Leptoxis carinata)
Crested Mudalia (Leptoxis carinata) is a freshwater snail with records scattered across a roughly Appalachian range. They're found in Atlantic drainages from New York to North Carolina. Maryland Biodiversity Project has records from the Piedmont, Blue Ridge, and Ridge and Valley regions but not Garrett County. It appears to favor high-gradient unpolluted streams, where it is generally found on stones.
The Piedmont starts at the Fall Line (picture Route 1 or I-95) and includes the area immediately to the west. East of the Fall Line is the coastal plain. The range of many Maryland taxa end at one side or the other of that line! While it may appear subtle at first glance, think rocky streams to the west, sandy streams to the east, and then layer on details from there. Without naming species, what other habitat-level differences appear on one side or the other of the Fall Line?
This MBP map allows you to toggle physiographic provinces, counties, and USGS quads - https://www.marylandbiodiversity.com/quadMap.php
📸: (c) Rob Aguilar/SERC - Howard Co., Maryland (4/12/2018).
🔍 More at Maryland Biodiversity Project:
https://www.marylandbiodiversity.com/view/17499
Bill
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I think I might start posting some of my nature / conservation outreach posts here as well as on other forums (e.g., MBP, Monterey Audubon, etc.).
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