The snail Goniobasis proxima has never been observed north of the James River in Virginia until discovered by Stroud Water Research Center biologists in three locations in southeastern Pennsylvania. Genetic data will be used to disentangle the history of the species in Pennsylvania and to evaluate a controversial hypothesis that some snails have not moved between watersheds for over 60 million years. This species could also help validate DNA barcoding for species identification because individuals of this species may diverge more in their DNA sequence than two distantly related mayfly species.
(Project details may change over the lifespan of a project. The project description listed here is from the annual report of the most recent project year.)
Funded by: Stroud Water Research Center
Principal Investigator: William H. Eldridge
Project Years: 2010, 2011, 2012
