BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Physella wrighti
Hotwater Physa
| Scientific Name: | Physella wrighti Te and Clarke, 1985 | ||||||||||
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| English Name: | Hotwater Physa | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | Turgeon, D. D., J. F. Quinn, Jr., A. E. Bogan, E. V. Coan, F. G. Hochberg, W. G. Lyons, P. M. Mikkelsen, R. J. Neves, C. F. E. Roper, G. Rosenberg, B. Roth, A. Scheltema, F. G. Thompson, M. Vecchione, and J. D. Williams. 1998. Common and scientific names of aquatic invertebrates from the United States and Canada: Mollusks. 2nd Edition. American Fisheries Society Special Publication 26, Bethesda, Maryland. 526 pp. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Species | ||||||||||
| Species Group: | Invertebrate Animal | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | MO-PHYWRI | ||||||||||
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| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G1 (May 2024) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S1 (Apr 2015) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Red | ||||||||||
| Provincial FRPA list: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Wildlife Act: | |||||||||||
| COSEWIC Status: | Endangered (Mar 2008) | ||||||||||
| SARA Schedule: | 1 - Endangered (Jun 2003) | ||||||||||
| General Status Canada: | |||||||||||
| Ecology & Life History | |||||||||||
| General Description: | |||||||||||
| Migration Characteristics: (Global / Provincial) | |||||||||||
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Nonmigrant: Local Migrant: Distant Migrant: Within Borders Migrant: |
N / N / N / na / |
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| Habitats: (Type / Subtype / Dependence) |
Springs / Hot Spring / Obligate
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| Global Habitat Comments: | This species is found in warm water springs and pools, with average temperatures of 23-36 ºC (Helmond et al. 2023). | ||||||||||
| Provincial Habitat Comments: |
Restricted to Alpha Stream of Liard Hotsprings (temp: 36.5pH: 7.8); bordered by soft sediments and vegetation including Chara (Lee and Ackerman 1998c). |
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| Food Habits: |
Detritivore: Adult, Immature
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| Global Food Habits Comments: | This species most likely grazes on algae and microbial organisms (Helmond et al. 2023). | ||||||||||
| Global Phenology: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
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| Colonial Breeder: | N | ||||||||||
| Length(cm)/width(cm)/Weight(g): | / / | ||||||||||
| Elevation (m) (min / max): |
Global:
Provincial: |
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| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | Y | ||||||||||
| Global Range Comment: | This species is endemic to northern British Columbia, Canada in the Liard River Hot Spring Complex in Liard River Provincial Park (Scudder 1996; Lee and Ackerman 2000; COSEWIC 2008; British Columbia Conservation Data Centre 2015; Helmond et al. 2023). | ||||||||||
| Authors / Contributors | |||||||||||
| Global Information Author: | Cordeiro, J. (2008); rev. T. Cornelisse (2024) | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | May 24, 2024 | ||||||||||
| Provincial Information Author: | French, L. | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | Nov 04, 2004 | ||||||||||
| References and Related Literature | |||||||||||
B.C. Ministry of Environment. Recovery Planning in BC. B.C. Minist. Environ. Victoria, BC. |
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British Columbia Conservation Data Centre. 2015. Element Subnational Ranking Form in Biotics 5 database. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia. |
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COSEWIC. 2008q. COSEWIC assessment and update status report on the Hotwater Physa Physella wrighti in Canada. Committee on the Status on Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vii + 34pp. |
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Helmond, E., Finlay, K., Sheffield, C., Hart, M. and J. Heron. 2023. Ascertaining the life history and thermal preferences and tolerances of the hot spring snail Physella wrighti Te and Clarke (Gastropoda: Physidae). Canadian Journal of Zoology 101(8): 672-685. |
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Lee, J. S. 2006. Update COSEWIC Status Report on Hotwater Physa snail (Physella wrighti). Prepared for the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada, Ottawa, 32pp. |
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Lee, J.S. and J.D. Ackerman. 2000. Freshwater Molluscs at Risk in British Columbia: Three Examples of "Risk". Pp. 67-73 in L.M. Darling, ed. 2000. Proc. Conf. on the Biology and Manage. Species and Habitats at Risk, Kamloops, B.C., 15 - 19 Feb., 1999. Vol. 1; B.C. Minist. Environ., Lands and Parks, Victoria, BC, and Univ. College of the Cariboo, Kamloops, BC. 490pp. |
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2024. Species Summary: Physella wrighti. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed May 8, 2025).