> Fontigens bottimeri (Walker 1925)
  

> Habitat & Distribution
Hershler and his colleagues (1990) gave the distribution of F. bottimeri as "a few localities in Potomac River basin of District of Columbia and Maryland, and Shenandoah River basin of northwestern Virginia.  Found in both caves and small springs."  The only Virginia population documented by Hershler was that of Ogden's Cave in Frederick County.  We here report one additional population in a small spring run on private property in Frederick county.  About ten animals were collected from organic debris in perhaps 30 minutes of effort.

> Ecology & Life history
I am not aware of any good study on the life history of Fontigens.  But populations typically seem to maintain high densities year round, as though reproduction might be continuous.  The small spring run inhabited by our F. bottimeri population seemed rather rich and hard.  

> Taxonomy & Systematics
Of the nine species of Fontigens monographed by Hershler et al. (1990), this is among the rarest and most obscure.  Its taxonomy is stable. 

 
>References
Hershler, R., J.R. Holsinger, and L. Hubricht (1990)  A revision of the North American freshwater snail genus Fontigens (Prosobranchia: Hydrobiidae). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 509:1-49.  Stewart, T. W., & R. T. Dillon, Jr.  (2004)  Species composition and geographic distribution of Virginia's freshwater gastropod fauna: A review using historical records.  Am. Malac. Bull. 19: 79-91.