''Aartsenia arctica'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

sea snail Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the ...

, a

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

gastropod The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...

mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is e ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Pyramidellidae Pyramidellidae, common name the pyram family, or pyramid shells, is a voluminous taxonomic family of mostly small and minute ectoparasitic sea snails, marine heterobranch gastropod molluscs. The great majority of species of pyrams are micromol ...

, the pyrams and their allies. The species is one of the two species within the genus ''Aartsenia'', with the exception of the other related species being '' Aartsenia candida''.WoRMS (2011). ''Aartsenia arctica'' (Dall & Bartsch, 1909). Accessed through:

World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scientific specialist ...

at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=576636 on 2011-10-26

Description

The straw-yellow shell is large and has an elongate-ovate shape. Its length measures 2.4 mm. (The whorls of the

protoconch A protoconch (meaning first or earliest or original shell) is an embryonic or larval shell which occurs in some classes of molluscs, e.g., the initial chamber of an ammonite or the larval shell of a gastropod. In older texts it is also called ...

are decollated.) The turns of the whorls of the teleoconch turns are rounded, and have subtabulate summits. They are marked by lines of growth and numerous fine, closely placed, wavy, spiral striations. The periphery is well rounded. The sutures are well impressed. The base of the shell is rather elongated. It is marked like the space between the sutures. The

aperture In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture and focal length of an optical system determine the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane. An opt ...

is pear-shaped, rather narrow posteriorily, and somewhat effuse anteriorly. The posterior angle is rendered obtuse by the tabulation. The outer lip is thin. The

columella Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella (; Arabic: , 4 – ) was a prominent writer on agriculture in the Roman Empire. His ' in twelve volumes has been completely preserved and forms an important source on Roman agriculture, together with the wo ...

is short, curved, slightly reflected, reinforced by the attenuated base and provided with a weak fold at its insertion. The parietal wall is covered by a thin translucent callus.Dall & Bartsch, A Monograph of West American Pyramidellid Mollusks, United States National Museum Bulletin 68, p. 224; 1909 Plate 28 # 5
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Distribution

This species occurs off

Hagemeister Island Hagemeister Island (russian: Остров Гагемейстера) is an uninhabited island in the U.S. state of Alaska, located on the north shore of Bristol Bay at the entrance to Togiak Bay. The island is long, has a land area of , and its ...

Bering Sea The Bering Sea (, ; rus, Бе́рингово мо́ре, r=Béringovo móre) is a marginal sea of the Northern Pacific Ocean. It forms, along with the Bering Strait, the divide between the two largest landmasses on Earth: Eurasia and The Ameri ...

Habitat

This species is found in the following habitats: * Brackish * Marine

References

* Turgeon, D.; Quinn, J.F.; Bogan, A.E.; Coan, E.V.; Hochberg, F.G.; Lyons, W.G.; Mikkelsen, P.M.; Neves, R.J.; Roper, C.F.E.; Rosenberg, G.; Roth, B.; Scheltema, A.; Thompson, F.G.; Vecchione, M.; Williams, J.D. (1998). ''Common and scientific names of aquatic invertebrates from the United States and Canada: mollusks''. 2nd ed. American Fisheries Society Special Publication, 26. American Fisheries Society: Bethesda, MD (USA). . IX, 526 + cd-rom pp. page(s): 111

External links

To World Register of Marine Species

To ITIS
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q4662654 Pyramidellidae Gastropods described in 1909