Ross,

Thanks for the reply. Actually, a few people have replied to me
privately. As you've said, my first thought was that a limpet
on eelgrass may just be a form of another common species that
has become specialized to for that habitat...like the Lottia
pelta that live on Postelsia stypes (see my Web site). For that
reason I've asked for opinions on the specimens I've found...
I must say that they fit the Kozloff key (THE key for species
on my coast) perfectly. One friend of mine says that he believes
my specimens are indeed L. alveus, and I've since e-mailed an
expert on the species for his opinion. So I'm awaiting the
verdict. I must say that it is confusing to read that everyone
says Lottia alveus is extinct in the Atlantic, although west
coast authorities know that it isn't extinct in the Pacific
...when does a species become extinct!?

From the fantastic Pacific coast,

Peter.


At 01:44 AM 9/5/01 +0000, you wrote:
>First, Splendid site
>(http://modena.intergate.ca/personal/seashell/bcframe.html) - great
>Photos, especially of live animals!!  Bravo.  The species you are
>calling Lottia alveus (Conrad), seems to be an elongated form of pelta
>Rathke, or perhaps strigatella - it is lighter, more transluscent, but
>if you take a look at the specimens you find in the vicinity, NOT on
>Zostera, i think you will find they are the same species.  A similar
>thing occurs in Nova Scotia at a few localities where eel-grass
>communities are well established - Lottia testudinalis (Muller) has (in
>the absence of alveus, which formerly occupied that habitat) expanded
>its normal niche to take advantage of the juicy algae on the grass
>blades.  It is unknown whether those engaging in this specialization
>comprise a genetically distinct sub-population, or whether they just
>grow ligher and more elongate on the eelgrass, as a response to
>different living conditions (would make a great honors thesis!!).  There
>are no references, since i seem to be the only one around here that has
>taken serious notice of the phenomenon.  To find ths occuring on the
>other coast, is interesting, to say the least.
>
>>From the rather dry (but still great!!) North,
>Ross.
>
>Peter Egerton Wrote:
>
>Hi all,
>
>In adding species to my Web site I've come across something a little
>puzzling. I Boundary Bay, just south of Vancouver BC, I collected a
>number of limpets that I've labeled Lottia alveus. This limpet was very
>abundant living on eelgrass stems.
>
>What puzzles me is that a number of Web sites call it an extinct
>species. One is http://ucmp1.berkeley.edu/davidl/Pages/biblio.html which
>lists a paper written in 1991:
>
>Carlton, J. T., G. J. Vermeij, D. R. Lindberg, Debby A. Carlton and E.
>C. Dudley. The first historical extinction of a marine invertebrate in
>an ocean basin: The demise of the eelgrass limpet Lottia alveus. Biol.
>Bull. 180:72-80. 1991
>
>
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Peter Egerton, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Collector of worldwide Mollusca, lifetime student
of zoology and computers.
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Step into my website:
http://www.intergate.ca/personal/seashell/index.html
("Peter's Seashells" includes "Seashells of British Columbia",
        links and my resume)
        -Links to add, remove, alter?  Just ask!
        -Suggestions always welcome :-)
        -This is an on-going project...

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