''Aesopus goforthi'' 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

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 ...

Columbellidae The Columbellidae, the dove snails or dove shells, are a family of minute to small sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the order Neogastropoda.Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S. (2010). Columbellidae. In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) Wo ...

, the dove snails. This is a

taxon inquirendum In biological classification, a ''species inquirenda'' is a species of doubtful identity requiring further investigation. The use of the term in English-language biological literature dates back to at least the early nineteenth century. The term t ...

Description

The length of the shell attains 13 mm, its diameter 3.3 mm. (Original description) The shell is smooth, slender, and elongate, with inconspicuous sutures and approximately eight

whorl A whorl ( or ) is an individual circle, oval, volution or equivalent in a whorled pattern, which consists of a spiral or multiple concentric objects (including circles, ovals and arcs). Whorls in nature File:Photograph and axial plane floral ...

s. The protoconch is defective and smooth, while the subsequent whorls gradually increase in size and are moderately convex. The shell's color is greenish-waxen with dark chestnut flammules, so arranged on the

body whorl The body whorl is part of the morphology of the shell in those gastropod mollusks that possess a coiled shell. The term is also sometimes used in a similar way to describe the shell of a cephalopod mollusk. In gastropods In gastropods, the b ...

as to form two irregular bands: one above and one below the periphery. These bands are also visible inside 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 ...

and on the base of the columella. The paler surface of the shell is irregularly mottled with opaque whitish blotches. The aperture is short and relatively wide, with a simple, sharp, and smooth outer lip. Both the body and columella are smooth, with a thin layer of callus. The

siphonal canal The siphonal canal is an anatomical feature of the shells of certain groups of sea snails within the clade Neogastropoda. Some sea marine gastropods have a soft tubular anterior extension of the mantle called a siphon through which water is ...

is short, wide, and not recurved.

Distribution

This marine species occurs off Monterey, California, USA.

References

External links

Dall W.H. (1921). Summary of the marine shellbearing mollusks of the northwest coast of America

External links

* {{cite journal, doi=10.11646/zoosymposia.13.1.19 , author=deMaintenon M.J. , year=2019 , title=The columbellid species of the northeast Pacific coast from the Aleutian Islands to Cedros Island, Baja California (Neogastropoda: Columbellidae) , journal=Zoosymposia, volume=13 , pages=160-183 goforthi Gastropods described in 1912