''Cirsonella cubitalis'' is a minute

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 ...

Skeneidae The Skeneidae are a speciose family of minute to small marine gastropod molluscs in the superfamily Trochoidea.Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S. (2013). Skeneidae. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php ...

.Marshall, B. (2013). Cirsonella cubitale (Hedley, 1907). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=720339 on 2013-10-03

Description

The original description by Charles Hedley (1907): The height of the shell attains 1.15 mm, its diameter 0.8 mm. The minute, thin, translucent, and perforate shell has a conical shape. Its colour is white. The spire contains four

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 first two are rounded and smooth. Its

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

shows a dozen prominent, distant, thin radial ribs descending the last two whorls perpendicularly, broadening at the periphery. These there produce a marked angle to the contour of the shell. The spiral threads lattice the interspaces and denticulate the edges of the ribs. The round

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 ...

adheres anteriorly to 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 ...

for a short space. The outer lip is formed by the last radial rib. The inner lip is a little expanded and reflected. The umbilicus has a narrow perforation. Charles Hedley, The Mollusca of Mast Head Reef, Capricorn Group, Queensland. Part II; Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales v. 32 (1907)
(described as ''Cyclostrema cubitale'')

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 ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and was found in the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

off

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

at depths between 30 m and 36 m.

References

* Cotton, B.C. 1959. ''South Australian Mollusca. Archaeogastropoda''. Handbook of the Flora and Fauna of South Australia. Adelaide : South Australian Government Printer 449 pp. {{Taxonbar, from=Q16975755 cubitalis Gastropods described in 1907