Abstract

The province of Quebec is at present one of the largest political units of Canada. Its population, and particularly the cities and farms, is concentrated along the St. Lawrence and Ottawa rivers, so that mollusk records for the province are mainly from the southern third. Notable exceptions to this pattern are the records for James Bay and the Ungava Bay regions which have extended the range of many species far to the north on the mainland of North America. The Gaspe peninsula has attracted many shell collectors, a fortunate circumstance which has demonstrated the northeastern extension of dispersal of some species and added many introduced species to the Quebec list. On the other hand, the vast interior remains largely unexplored. In the past, these great expanses, abundantly provided with lakes and rivers, were inaccessible save for costly and well-organized expeditions. Geological Survey of Canada parties have brought back valuable material from these areas but much still remains to be done to give us adequate knowledge of the molluscan fauna of this region. The situation has changed with the advent of the airplane and the opening of the iron ranges of the interior. It seems to be a good idea, at this time, to consolidate into a provisional checklist the many records for the province. The following summary of Quebec records will, it is hoped, stimulate collectors to work in the so-far untouched areas.

How to Cite:

La Rocque, A., (1962) “Checklist of the non-marine mollusca of Quebec”, Sterkiana 7(1), 23–44.