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Dear All, Recently I was reading my mail order copy from a German publication titled, Dharma B: Report on fossil Amphidromus & Discriptions of new species.

A lot of hard time consuming work, indeed, on this project and I take my hat off to Mr Dharma., for this.

However a few of the Terrestrials, should be clarified, to the snail world, and definately to the snail Conch snailers.

Plate 10
Amphidromus palaceus tanggamusensis
Amphidromus palaceus lemongensis
Amphidromus palaceus taloensis
Amphidromus ameliae

They all look like Amphidromus palaceus, and I do know that the Amphidromus palaceus do come in different colour Forms, white & yellow and patterns with bands as well. Should the above be called " Forms "

Plate 11
Amphidromus sancangensis -- Is this not a form of Amphidrom us heerianus. They come from the same island as stated on the location data. A. heerianus are found all over Jawa island. Does a colony of Amphidromus heeruianus, having less, a few bands, and maybe a darker red colour, get a new name - species ?

Amphidromus ristiae
Amphidromus sekincauensis
Are these, not a form of Amphidromus similis Pilsbry 1900.. They definately do look similar.

Plate 12
Amphidromus poecilochrous poecilochrous Fulton 1896 Figure 14 - 16
Amphidromus poecilochrus adomaraensis
Amphidromus poecilochrous lembataensis
Mr Dharma, why have these been split up, and made into a " New species ". The've been in snail books,collections, and sold in the Terrestrial market, world wide, as far as I can remeber, and since I started collecting snails in 1990. Its only a difference of a red stripe or ye llow shell colour with stripes.. When they were originally discribed by Fulton in 1896, and were they not all one genis then ? Why has this be split up now into " New Species ", because of a difference in a coloured red stripe.? Mr Dharma please explain ? I don't seem to understand this concept, and I bet snailers on Conch will want a clarification on this.

..I do believe Mr Dharma found, most, if not ALL these in person as, as he has illustrations, of live pictures. Great effort on the Live pictures, but did Mr Dharma find the ones that don't have live pictures. I have noticed them on web sites world wide, dating back a few years, especially, the Amphidromus poecilochrous poecilochrous Fulton 1896.

Regarding Habitat -- The comment " No data " was written on two of the snails mentioned. Amphidromus perversus kadatuaensis, Amphidromus poecilochrous adonaraensis. What does this mean -- No data.
Also no Live Pictures on, the two snails mentioned above. Did you find them yourself, or were they found by a third party. First time I've run into reading a " Discription of a New Species " with a comment " No Data. Plus, again, these two snails are on a few websites, web photo albums, world wide. Unless the discoveries are different. I could be wrong.

The Amphidromus elviae and the Amphidromus banksi Butot 1955, on Plate 9 No 16 and 21, looks, exceptionally similar..Have radular and soft part studies been done on these. I do not see sketches, diagrams and illustrations, on any of these new species discribed.

Have these New Species, as indicated, been registered with the ICNZ, or will it be, later on. Please note, if they do ,indeed, qualify as candidates, and not brought up for registration, they will be deemed " Null "
Mr Dharma please explain, whether the name, " Forms " should be added or are they newly discovered Species, New to the Scientific world, or merely " Forms of a Species ".

Anybody who has a copy of this German publication. Comments Please

Regards

George F