''Compsodrillia haliostrephis'' , common name the spindle drillia, 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 ...

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

Pseudomelatomidae Pseudomelatomidae is a family of predatory sea snails, marine gastropods included in the superfamily Conoidea (previously Conacea) and part of the Neogastropoda ( Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005). In 1995 Kantor elevated the subfamily Pseudomelatominae ...

, the turrids and allies.

Description

The length of the shell varies between 10 mm and 25 mm. (Original description) The pure white shell of the holotype contains 8

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 flo ...

s with a glossy rounded vitreous

protoconch A protoconch (meaning first or earliest or original shell) is an embryonic or larval shell which occurs in some classes of molluscs, e.g., the initial chamber of an ammonite or the larval shell of a gastropod. In older texts it is also called ...

of two whorls. The spiral sculpture resembles much as in ''

Compsodrillia eucosmia ''Compsodrillia eucosmia'' is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Pseudomelatomidae, the turrids and allies. Description The length of the shell varies between 10 mm and 25 mm. (Original description) Th ...

'', a line marginating the suture. There are two or three strong primaries on the upper whorls, five or six on 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 ...

, and eight or ten smaller ones on the

siphonal canal The siphonal canal is an anatomical feature of the shells of certain groups of sea snails within the clade Neogastropoda. Some sea marine gastropods have a soft tubular anterior extension of the mantle called a siphon through which water is ...

. The principal primaries are strongly marked and slightly swollen on the summits of the ribs. The secondary spirals, very faint or absent behind the periphery but present in the interspaces in front of it, are finer than in the ''C. eucosmia'', and more numerous. The fasciole is wide, nearly smooth, undulated, and little excavated. The aperture is narrow and long. The notch of the aperture is shallow, the interior not lirate. The inner lip simple shows a thin callus. The siphonal canal is wide, straight and rather long;.The penultimate whorl, contains 7 ribs, narrower and less prominent, as is the varix, than in ''C. eucosmia''

Distribution

''C. haliostrephis'' can be found in the Gulf of Mexico, ranging from the coast of Louisiana south to Brazil.Tunnell, John W., Jr., Felder, Darryl L., & Earle, Sylvia A., eds. ''Gulf of Mexico Origin, Waters, and Biota, Volume 1: Biodiversity.'' Texas A&M University Press, 2009. 669.

References

* Absalão, R. S.; Pimenta, A. D. & Caetano, C. H. S. 2007. Turridae (Mollusca, Neogastropoda, Conoidea) coletados no litoral sudeste do Brasil, Programa REVIZEE "Score" Central. Biociências (On-line) 13: 19-47

External links

*
Rosenberg, G.; Moretzsohn, F.; García, E. F. (2009). Gastropoda (Mollusca) of the Gulf of Mexico, pp. 579–699 in: Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico–Origins, Waters, and Biota. Texas A&M Press, College Station, Texas
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Compsodrillia Haliostrephis haliostrephis Gastropods described in 1889