Bakawan nasuso – Species Splash
You’ve heard of bubble tea, now get ready for a bubble snail! To celebrate yesterday’s World Mangrove Day, we introduce you to our latest discovery: Bakawan nasuso, a newly-described species from a genus of bubble snails that live exclusively in mangrove ecosystems.
This species was described and named by UP MSI University Researcher Dr. Gizelle Batomalaque in collaboration with Lawrence Jacob Alterado, Jalyssa Fermo, and Dr. Severino Salmo III of the UP Institute of Biology. Like other bubble snails, Bakawan nasuso sp. nov. has a thin, bubble-like shell, and it was differentiated from other snails in the genus Bakawan using DNA barcoding and the examination of reproductive anatomy, shells, and mouth apparatuses. The species epithet comes from the Tagalog phrase “na suso” or “is a snail” to help clarify that the genus Bakawan refers to snails, and not mangroves.
Interestingly, Bakawan nasuso sp. nov. was found in an abandoned fishpond that was recolonized by mangrove trees. Its discovery highlights the hidden biodiversity of mangrove ecosystems, even in disturbed or sub-optimal environments. It is likely that the rehabilitation of abandoned fishponds may not just help significantly in mangrove restoration, but also in nurturing species that are just waiting to be uncovered. Bakawan nasuso sp. nov. reminds us this World Mangrove Day that allowing mangrove populations to naturally recolonize adjacent areas can be a simple but effective boost to our mangrove forests.
This study was made possible with the assistance of the Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance.
Species Splash is an initiative of the UP Marine Science Institute that features the marine biodiversity being studied by our scientists.