''Buccinulum vittatum'' 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
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
Buccinidae.
[MolluscaBase eds. (2020). MolluscaBase. Buccinulum vittatum (Quoy & Gaimard, 1833). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=491394 on 2020-06-20]
Distribution
This 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.
It is found all around
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 ...
and as far south as the
New Zealand subantarctic islands. The species was first documented in 1833 by
Jean René Constant Quoy
Jean René Constant Quoy (10 November 1790 in Maillé, Vendée, Maillé – 4 July 1869 in Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, Rochefort) was a French naval surgeon, zoologist and anatomist.
In 1806, he began his medical studies at the school of naval ...
and
Joseph Paul Gaimard
Joseph Paul Gaimard (31 January 1793 – 10 December 1858) was a French naval surgeon and naturalist.
Biography
Gaimard was born at Saint-Zacharie on January 31, 1793. He studied medicine at the naval medical school in Toulon, subsequent ...
.
Taxonomy
Four subspecies were previously recognised but they are currently considered to be taxonomically invalid based on shell morphology and genetic data.
''B. v. vittatum'' (the nominate subspecies ''Buccinulum vittatum vittatum'') is found in the northern half of the
North Island
The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...
; ''B. v. bicinctum'' is found on the
Chatham Islands
The Chatham Islands ( ) (Moriori: ''Rēkohu'', 'Misty Sun'; mi, Wharekauri) are an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean about east of New Zealand's South Island. They are administered as part of New Zealand. The archipelago consists of about te ...
; ''B. colensoi'' is found on the South-East coast of the North island; ''B. v. littorinoides'' in
Cook Strait, the sub-Antarctic islands and South Island.
/ref>
Description
The shell of this species is about 25mm in length.
References
* Miller M & Batt G, ''Reef and Beach Life of New Zealand'', William Collins (New Zealand) Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1973
* Powell A W B, ''New Zealand Mollusca'', William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979
Buccinidae
Gastropods of New Zealand
Gastropods described in 1833
{{Buccinidae-stub