''Amoria zebra'', common name the zebra volute, 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 ...

Volutidae ''Volutidae'', common name volutes, are a taxonomic family of predatory sea snails that range in size from 9 mm to over 500 mm. They are marine gastropod mollusks. Most of the species have no operculum. Distribution This family of sea snails ...

, the volutes.

Synonyms

* ''Amoria (Amoria) zebra'' (Leach, 1814) * ''Marginella radiata'' Lamarck, 1822 * ''Scaphella zebra'' Adams, 1864 * ''Voluta lineata'' Leach, 1814 * ''Voluta stragulata'' Megerle von Mühlfeldt, 1829 * ''Voluta zebra'' Leach, 1814 (original combination) * ''Zebramoria lineatiana'' Weaver & du Pont, 1967

Description

The length of the shell varies between 25 mm and 55 mm. These shells are solid, glazed, with a short spire. Whorls are usually smooth and glossy.

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 white and shows four strong plaits. The outer lip is thickened and smooth. The pattern of these shells is quite variable, in colour and in the density of the axial lines. The background colour varies from white to fawn or mid-brown, usually with axial brown lines.

Distribution

This marine species occurs from North Australia to

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Habitat

These sea snails live in intertidal waters in sandy substrate, at depths of 5 to 55 m.Sea Shells of NSW
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Bibliography

* A. G. Hinton - Guide to Australian Shells * Alan G. Hinton - Shells of New Guinea & Central Pacific * Bail P. & Limpus A. (2001) ''The genus Amoria''. In: G.T. Poppe & K. Groh (eds) A conchological iconography. Hackenheim: Conchbooks. 50 pp., 93 pls. * Barry Wilson - Australian Marine Shells Part 2 * Harald Douté, M. A. Fontana Angioy - Volutes, The Doute collection

References

External links

Encyclopedia of life

Femorale
Volutidae Gastropods described in 1814 {{Volutidae-stub