Awateria Watsoni
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''Awateria watsoni'' is a species of
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 ...
Borsoniidae Borsoniidae is a monophyletic family of small to medium-sized sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Conoidea.Bouchet, P. (2011). Borsoniidae. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.o ...
.WoRMS (2015). Awateria watsoni (E. A. Smith, 1891). In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=433096 on 10 February 2016


Description

The length of the shell attains 6.5 mm, its breadth 3.3 mm. (Original description) This small, white shell has a short fusiform shape. It has a large smooth apex. The upper slope of the six
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 is comparatively smooth, exhibiting only a few (about 4) faint spiral lirae, and the lower portion and the greater part of 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 ...
are covered with a distinct cancellation, the points of intersection of the oblique and transverse lirae being rather acutely nodulose. The sinus is moderately deep. The arcuate lip is prominent.Smith, E. A. (1891b) ''Descriptions of new species of shells from the ‛Challenger’ expedition''. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1891, 436–445, pls. 34–35.
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Distribution

This marine 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 Australia.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Awateria watsoni watsoni Gastropods described in 1891 Gastropods of Australia