SEASONAL SPECIES COMPOSITION AND RICHNESS OF TERRESTRIAL MOLLUSKS IN PROTECTED AREA (CROSS RIVER NATIONAL PARK) CROSS RIVER STATE

Terrestrial snails are key indicators of climatic changes and ecosystem health. This study recorded 2456 land molluscs from 22 species in 6 families across 20 plots. The most abundant families were Urocyclidae, Streptaxidae, and Archatinidae, comprising 90.82% of the total collection. Aillyidae, Cyclophoridae, and Succineidae had the fewest species. Gymnarion sp. (Subulinidae) was the most numerous with 997 individuals, followed by Gonaxis camerunensis. Margalef’s index indicated the highest species richness in the Buffer Zone (3.18). Shannon-Weiner’s index revealed the highest diversity (2.26) in the Buffer Zone. Chao 2 and Jackknife estimators for Nkunaya were 22.13 and 21.13, respectively, while for the Buffer Zone they were 21.90 and 24.24. The Whittaker Index for the Buffer Zone was 1.47, showing low differentiation among plots.