Puget oregonian (Cryptomastix devia): COSEWIC status appraisal summary 2013

Extirpated
2013

COSEWIC status appraisal summaries are working documents used in assigning the status of wildlife species suspected of being at risk in Canada. This document may be cited as follows:

COSEWIC. 2013. COSEWIC status appraisal summary on the Puget Oregonian Cryptomastix devia in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. xv pp.

Production note:
COSEWIC acknowledges Robert G. Forsyth for writing the status appraisal summary on the Puget Oregonian, Cryptomastix devia, in Canada, prepared under contract with Environment Canada. This report was overseen and edited by Dwayne Lepitzki, Co-chair of the COSEWIC Molluscs Specialist Subcommitte.

For additional copies contact:

COSEWIC Secretariat
c/o Canadian Wildlife Service
Environment Canada
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0H3

Tel.: 819-953-3215
Fax: 819-994-3684
COSEWIC E-mail
COSEWIC Website

Également disponible en français sous le titre Sommaire du statut de l’espèce du COSEPAC sur L’escargot du Puget (Cryptomastix devia) au Canada.

© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2013.
Catalogue No. CW69-14/2-34-2013E-PDF
ISBN 978-1-100-22496-1

COSEWIC
Assessment Summary

Assessment Summary – May 2013

Common name
Puget Oregonian

Scientific name
Cryptomastix devia

Status
Extirpated

Reason for designation
This large land snail is known in Canada from only three old records (1850-1905) from Vancouver Island and the Lower Fraser Valley of British Columbia. Extensive searches within the historical range have failed to find the species.

Occurrence
British Columbia

Status history
Designated Extirpated in November 2002. Status re-examined and confirmed in May 2013.

COSEWIC
Status Appraisal Summary

Cryptomastix devia
Puget Oregonian
Range of occurrence in Canada (province/territory/ocean): British Columbia

Status History:

Designated Extirpated in November 2002. Status re-examined and confirmed in May 2013.

Evidence (indicate as applicable):

Wildlife species:
Change in eligibility, taxonomy or designatable units: no

Explanation:
There is no change in eligibility, scientific taxonomy, or designatable units. However, the English common name is “Puget Oregonian” (not “Puget Oregonian Snail”), following common usage, Turgeon et al. (1998), and the recommendation of the Molluscs Species Specialist Subcommittee. The French name was incorrectly translated “limace de Puget” (COSEWIC 2002; correct elsewhere); it should be “escargot du Puget”.

 

Range:
Change in Extent of Occurrence (EO): no
Change in Index of Area of Occupancy (IAO): no
Change in number of known or inferred current locations*: no
Significant new survey information: yes

Explanation:
Despite recent searches, there remain no known populations of Puget Oregonian in Canada (Durand; Gelling; Ovaska; Heron; Millikin; Ramsay; Nernberg all pers. comm. 2011).

Since the last assessment of Puget Oregonian (COSEWIC 2002), there has been a considerable interest in terrestrial gastropods by local and provincial governments, conservation organizations, consultants under contract to government and other clients, and naturalists. Within the historical range of Puget Oregonian in the Lower Fraser Valley and on southern Vancouver Island, numerous site surveys were made for terrestrial gastropods since 2000. Many of these surveys targeted Oregon Forestsnail (Allogona townsendiana), which is believed to occupy similar habitats as Puget Oregonian (COSEWIC 2002), or were more general, targeting all species of terrestrial gastropods (Ovaska pers. comm. 2011). Some invertebrate surveys (e.g., Parkinson et al. 2009) found terrestrial gastropods only incidentally (Heron pers. comm. 2011). Fieldworkers surveying for Oregon Forestsnail and terrestrial gastropods in general are aware of and look for Puget Oregonian during their surveys (Forsyth pers. obs.). Because surveys for Oregon Forestsnail should detect Puget Oregonian both species were reassessed at the same time using the same search effort (Figure 1) as evidence for status.

Within the historical range, areas surveyed on southern Vancouver Island included Capital Regional District parks, Department of National Defence (DND) lands, industrial forestry lands, Parks Canada lands, and Crown land; and in the Lower Fraser Valley, municipal forests (Matsqui and Mission), DND land and Crown land were surveyed (Ovaska and Sopuck 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009; Bains et al. 2009; Parkinson et al. 2009; Sopuck et al. 2010; Astley pers. comm. 2011; Durand pers. comm. 2011; Heron pers. comm. 2011; COSEWIC 2013). Since 2000 a minimum of 1083 sites were surveyed for terrestrial gastropods in the Lower Fraser Valley (232 sites) and on Vancouver Island and the southern Gulf Islands (400 sites) (COSEWIC 2013). From 2009–2011, searches targeting Oregon Forestsnail amounted to a minimum of 827 hours following 525 km of wandering transects (see Table 2 in COSEWIC 2013 for details). Data for much of the additional work by biologists under contract to private landowners are not available, or are not quantifiable.

Surveys for terrestrial gastropods outside the historical range of Puget Oregonian, including some of the southern Gulf Islands, the west coast and northern Vancouver Island, and the Sunshine Coast, but also southeast BC, have failed to locate the species (Matthias pers. comm. 2011; Ovaska pers. comm. 2011; Forsyth pers. comm. 2011). Appendix 1 maps some of the search effort for terrestrial gastropods in BC and neighbouring provinces and territories.

* Use the IUCN definition of “location”

 

Population Information:
Change in number of mature individuals: no
Change in total population trend: no
Change in severity of population fragmentation: no
Change in trend in area and/or quality of habitat: no
Significant new survey information: yes

Explanation:
No additional data since previous assessment, although searches for the presence of the species (see above) and declining trends in the quality of habitat (see below) have continued.

 

Threats:
Change in nature and/or severity of threats: yes  

Explanation:
The cause of the extirpation of Puget Oregonian in Canada is uncertain, but habitat loss and fragmentation were identified as a threat in the US (COSEWIC 2002). Within the historical range of the species, removal and fragmentation of suitable habitat continues. Historically this was due to conversion of forest to farmland, but nowadays, urbanization is the main cause of habitat loss. In the Lower Fraser Valley, new large-scale communities continue to be developed in Mission, Abbotsford and Chilliwack (COSEWIC 2013). In these communities, large areas of high-quality terrestrial snail habitat are now developed, have development potential or are at the proposal stage (Durand pers. comm. 2011; COSEWIC 2013). Since the previous report, the severity of the threats has increased.

 

Protection:
Change in effective protection: no

Explanation:
Under the Species at Risk Act, Puget Oregonian was placed on Schedule 1 as Extirpated. The S-Rank in BC is SX (extirpated) (BCCDC 2011). A goal of the recovery strategy is to protect habitat and mitigate any threats if a population was found (BCIRT 2008).

 

Rescue Effect:
Change in evidence of rescue effect: no

Explanation:
No additional data since previous assessment. The recovery strategy includes the exploration of the feasibility and need to re-establish the species in Canada from Washington State populations by 2017 (BCIRT 2008). Natural dispersal north from the United States is very unlikely to occur. A petition to list the species in the US under their Endangered Species Act was submitted in 2008 (Curry et al. 2008; USFWS 2011). While a listing decision was made on some of the aquatic snails in the petition in September 2012 (USFW 2012), the decision on the terrestrial species, including Puget Oregonian, is expected in fiscal year 2013.

 

Quantitative Analysis:
Change in estimated probability of extirpation: unknown

Details:
No data available

 

Summary and Additional Considerations: [e.g., recovery efforts]
Puget Oregonian is extirpated from Canada. There are no records of this species since the early 1900s. This species has not been observed, both inside and outside its historical range, despite searches by skilled observers within the last 10 years.

Acknowledgements and authorities contacted:

Anderson, Robert. Research Scientist, Canadian Museum of Nature, PO Box 3443 – Station D, Ottawa, ON K1P 6P4.

Astley, Caroline. TEM Specialist (Wildlife and Vegetation), Hemmera, Suite 250 – 1380 Burrard Street, Vancouver, BC V6Z 2H3.

Durand, Ryan. Taara Environmental, PO Box 41, Nelson, BC V1L 5P7.

Fraser, David F. A/Manager BC CDC, Ecosystem Branch, Conservation Planning Section, Ministry of Environment, Government of B.C., PO Box 9358 – Station Prov Govt, Victoria, BC V8W 9M2.

Gelling, Lea. Zoologist, BC CDC, Ministry of Environment, PO BOX 9358 – Station Prov Govt, Victoria, BC V9W 9M2.

Heron, Jennifer. BC Invertebrates Recovery Team Chair. Invertebrate Specialist, B.C. Ministry of Environment, Ecosystem Protection and Sustainability Branch, Terrestrial Conservation Science Section, Room 315 - 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4.

Howes, B. Science Support, Species at Risk Program, Parks Canada, 25 Eddy St., 4^th Floor, Gatineau, QC K1A 0M5.

Matthias, Laura. Species at Risk Biologist, Salt Spring Island Conservancy. PO Box 722, Ganges, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 2W3

Millikin, R.L. A/Head Population Assessment, Pacific Wildlife Research Centre, Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada, RR #1, 5421 Robertson Rd., Delta, BC V4K 3N2.

Nantel, Patrick. Conservation Biologist, Species at Risk Program, Ecological Integrity Branch, Parks Canada, 25 Eddy St., 4^th Floor, Gatineau, QC K1A 0M5.

Nernberg, Dean. Species at Risk Officer, Director General of Environment, Directorate of Environmental Stewardship, National Defence Headquarters, MGen George R. Pearkes Building, 101 Colonel By, Ottawa, ON K1A 0K2.

Ovaska, Kristiina. Biolinx Environmental Research, 1759 Colburne Place, North Saanich, BC V8L 5A2.

Ramsay, Leah. Program Zoologist, Conservation Data Centre, B.C. Conservation Data Centre, Wildlife Inventory Section, Resources Inventory Branch, Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. P.O. Box 9344 Station Provincial Government, Victoria, BC V8W 9M1.

Information sources:

Astley, C., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. October 2011. Biologist, Hemmera, Vancouver, British Columbia.

Bains, B., A. Caldicott, L. Parkinson, and J. Heron. 2009. Surveys for invertebrate species at risk within the Mission Municipal Forest. British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Vancouver, British Columbia. 65 pp.

BCCDC (British Columbia Conservation Data Centre). 2011. Species Summary: Cryptomastix devia. British Columbia Ministry of Environment. [accessed October 2011].

BCCDC (British Columbia Conservation Data Centre). 2013. British Columbia Species and Ecosystems Explorer. British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Victoria British Columbia. Web site: http://www.a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ [accessed 15 February 2013]

BCIRT (British Columbia Invertebrates Recovery Team). 2008. Recovery strategy for Puget Oregonian snail (Cryptomastix devia) in British Columbia (PDF 655 KB). Prepared for the British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Victoria. 21 pp. [accessed October 2011].

COSEWIC. 2002. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the Puget Oregonian snail Cryptomastix devia in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada, Ottawa. vi + 20 pp.

COSEWIC. 2013. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the Oregon Forestsnail Allogona townsendiana in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada, Ottawa. . ix + 22pp.

Curry, T., N. Greenwald, and A. Garty, 2008. Petition to list 32 mollusk species from freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems of the northwestern United States as Threatened or Endangered under the Endangered Species Act (PDF 1.18 MB). Center for Biological Diversity, Portland, Oregon. Petition to Secretary of the Interior, Washington, DC and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Portland, Oregon. 86 pp. [accessed 21 February 2013].

Durand, R., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. October 2011. Biologist, Taara Environmental, Nelson, British Columbia.

Gelling, L., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. October 2011. Zoologist, British Columbia Conservation Data Centre, Ministry of Environment, Victoria, British Columbia.

Heron, J., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. September – October 2011. BC Invertebrates Recovery Team Chair. Invertebrate Specialist, B.C. Ministry of Environment, Vancouver, British Columbia.

Matthias, L., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. September – October 2011. Species at Risk Biologist, Salt Spring Island Conservancy, Salt Spring Island, British Columbia.

Millikin, R.L., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. October 2011. A/Head Population Assessment, Pacific Wildlife Research Centre, Canadian Wildlife Service, Delta, British Columbia.

Nernberg, D., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. November 2011. Species at Risk Officer, Director General of Environment, Directorate of Environmental Stewardship, National Defence Headquarters, Ottawa, Ontario.

Ovaska, K., pers. comm. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. October 2011. Biologist, Biolinx Environmental Research, North Saanich, British Columbia.

Ovaska, K., and L. Sopuck. 2006. Surveys for the Blue-grey Taildropper and other gastropods at risk within CRD parks and trail systems in 2006. Report prepared by Biolinx Environmental Research Ltd. for Capital Regional District Parks, Victoria, British Columbia. viii + 45 pp.

Ovaska, K., and L. Sopuck. 2007. Surveys for the Blue-grey Taildropper within CRD Parks and Trails System in 2007. Progress report, December 2007. Prepared by Biolinx Environmental Research Ltd. for Capital Regional District Parks, Victoria, British Columbia. 14 pp.

Ovaska, K., and L. Sopuck. 2008. Surveys for the Blue-grey Taildropper and other gastropods at risk within the CRD Parks and Trails System in 2008. Report prepared by Biolinx Environmental Research Ltd. for Capital Regional District Parks, Victoria, British Columbia. viii + 61 pp.

Ovaska, K., and L. Sopuck. 2009. Surveys for the Blue-grey Taildropper and other gastropods at risk within the CRD Regional Parks and Trails System in 2009. Report prepared by Biolinx Environmental Research Ltd. for Capital Regional District Parks, Victoria, British Columbia. 36 pp.

Parkinson, L., S.A. Blanchette, and J. Heron. 2009. Surveys for Bremner’s Fritillary (Speyeria zerene bremnerii) on Salt Spring, Mayne and Galiano islands, British Columbia, 2009. British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Ecosystems Branch, Wildlife Science Section, Vancouver, British Columbia. [42] p.

Ramsay, L., pers. com. 2011. Email correspondence to R. Forsyth. October 2011. Program Zoologist, B.C. Conservation Data Centre, Victoria, British Columbia.

Sopuck, L., K. Ovaska, and J. Heron. 2010. Surveys for terrestrial gastropods in Burns Bog, Delta. British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Vancouver, British Columbia. xii + 15 p.

Turgeon, D.D., J.F.J. Quinn, 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: ix + 526 pp.

USFWS (United States Fish and Wildlife Service). 2011. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; 90-day finding on a petition to list 29 mollusk species as threatened or endangered with critical habitat; proposed rule (PDF 372 KB). Federal Register 76: 61826-61853. [accessed 21 February 2013].

USFWS. 2012. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; 12-Month finding on a petition to list 14 aquatic mollusks as endangered or threatened; proposed rule (PDF 437 KB). Federal Register 77: 57922-57948. [accessed 21 February 2013].

Author of SAS: Robert G. Forsyth

Technical Summary

Cryptomastix devia
Puget Oregonian
Range of occurrence in Canada (province/territory/ocean): BC

Demographic Information

Extent and Occupancy Information

* See Definitions and Abbreviations on COSEWIC website and IUCN 2010 for more information on this term.

Quantitative Analysis

Threats (actual or imminent, to populations or habitats)

Habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation due to urban development

Rescue Effect (immigration from outside Canada)

Status of outside population(s)?
Washington (S2S3)
Oregon (S1)

Is immigration known or possible?
Not known, unlikely

Would immigrants be adapted to survive in Canada?
Possibly

Is there sufficient habitat for immigrants in Canada?
Possibly

Is rescue from outside populations likely?
No

Data Sensitive Species

Is this a data sensitive species?

There are no recent data to consider. If the species records were found, the species would likely be data sensitive.

Status History

Designated Extirpated in November 2002. Status re-examined and confirmed in May 2013.

Status and Reasons for Designation

Status:
Extirpated

Alpha-numeric Code:
not applicable

Reasons for Designation:
This large land snail is known in Canada from only three old records (1850-1905) from Vancouver Island and the Lower Fraser Valley of British Columbia. Extensive searches within the historical range have failed to find the species.

Applicability of Criteria

Criterion A (Decline in Total Number of Mature Individuals):

Not applicable. None found in Canada since 1905.

Criterion B (Small Distribution Range and Decline or Fluctuation):

Not applicable. None found in Canada since 1905.

Criterion C (Small and Declining Number of Mature Individuals):

Not applicable. None found in Canada since 1905.

Criterion D (Very Small or Restricted Total Population):

Not applicable. None found in Canada since 1905.

Criterion E (Quantitative Analysis):

Not applicable. None found in Canada since 1905.

Figure 1. Search effort for terrestrial snails within and adjacent to the known range of the Oregon Forestsnail and Puget Oregonian. Data from the BCCDC (2013) up to April 2012 as well as Forsyth (unpubl. data) up to 2011 are included. This map, produced by the COSEWIC Secretariat, was modified to show the extant sites for Oregon Forestsnail and is found in COSEWIC (2013). No Puget Oregonian was found during these searches.

Appendix 1. Searches for terrestrial molluscs in British Columbia and adjacent provinces and territories from 1999 to September 2011, compiled from records from Biolinx Environmental Research Ltd., Forsyth, and Wildlife Systems Research. Dots represent sites where searches for terrestrial snails and slugs have been made, using various methodologies. (Map prepared by Forsyth.)

COSEWIC History
he Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) was created in 1977 as a result of a recommendation at the Federal-Provincial Wildlife Conference held in 1976. It arose from the need for a single, official, scientifically sound, national listing of wildlife species at risk. In 1978, COSEWIC designated its first species and produced its first list of Canadian species at risk. Species designated at meetings of the full committee are added to the list. On June 5, 2003, the Species at Risk Act (SARA) was proclaimed. SARA establishes COSEWIC as an advisory body ensuring that species will continue to be assessed under a rigorous and independent scientific process.

COSEWIC Mandate
The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) assesses the national status of wild species, subspecies, varieties, or other designatable units that are considered to be at risk in Canada. Designations are made on native species for the following taxonomic groups: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fishes, arthropods, molluscs, vascular plants, mosses, and lichens.

COSEWIC Membership
COSEWIC comprises members from each provincial and territorial government wildlife agency, four federal entities (Canadian Wildlife Service, Parks Canada Agency, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and the Federal Biodiversity Information Partnership, chaired by the Canadian Museum of Nature), three non-government science members and the co-chairs of the species specialist subcommittees and the Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge subcommittee. The Committee meets to consider status reports on candidate species.

Definitions (2013)

Wildlife Species

A species, subspecies, variety, or geographically or genetically distinct population of animal, plant or other organism, other than a bacterium or virus, that is wild by nature and is either native to Canada or has extended its range into Canada without human intervention and has been present in Canada for at least 50 years.

Extinct (X)

A wildlife species that no longer exists.

Extirpated (XT)

A wildlife species no longer existing in the wild in Canada, but occurring elsewhere.

Endangered (E)

A wildlife species facing imminent extirpation or extinction.

Threatened (T)

A wildlife species likely to become endangered if limiting factors are not reversed.

Special Concern (SC)*

A wildlife species that may become a threatened or an endangered species because of a combination of biological characteristics and identified threats.

Not at Risk (NAR)**

A wildlife species that has been evaluated and found to be not at risk of extinction given the current circumstances.

Data Deficient (DD)***

A category that applies when the available information is insufficient (a) to resolve a species’ eligibility for assessment or (b) to permit an assessment of the species’ risk of extinction.

* Formerly described as “Vulnerable” from 1990 to 1999, or “Rare” prior to 1990.
** Formerly described as “Not In Any Category”, or “No Designation Required.”
*** Formerly described as “Indeterminate” from 1994 to 1999 or “ISIBD” (insufficient scientific information on which to base a designation) prior to 1994. Definition of the (DD) category revised in 2006.

The Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada, provides full administrative and financial support to the COSEWIC Secretariat.