''Alcithoe wilsonae'' 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 ...
of rare large
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 ...
mollusc
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 esti ...
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 ...
Volutidae, the volutes.
[Marshall, B.; Bail, P. (2015). Alcithoe wilsonae (Powell, 1933). In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=385247 on 2016-02-04]
Description
''A. wilsonae'' is a large
neogastropod marine snail.
Distribution
The species is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
[ Powell A. W. B., ''New Zealand Mollusca'', William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979 ] and has a rich fossil record.
[Beu, A.G. and Maxwell, P.A. 1990. Cenozoic Mollusca of New Zealand. New Zealand Geological Survey Bulletin, 58.]
References
Further reading
* Dell, R.K. 1978: ''Additions to the New Zealand Recent molluscan fauna with notes on Pachymelon (Palomelon)'', National Museum of New Zealand Records, 1(11)
*
Powell A W B, ''New Zealand Mollusca'',
William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979
* Bail, P., Limpus, A. 2005: ''A Conchological Iconography 11, The Recent Volutes of New Zealand, with a revision of the genus Alcithoe H. & A. Adams, 1853'', ConchBooks, Hackenheim, Germany
External links
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Taxon: ''Alcithoe wilsonae'' Powell, 1933 (Species)
Volutidae
Gastropods of New Zealand
Gastropods described in 1933
Taxa named by Arthur William Baden Powell
Endemic fauna of New Zealand
Endemic molluscs of New Zealand
{{Volutidae-stub