''Crossea gatliffi'' 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 small

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 ...

micromollusc A micromollusk is a shelled mollusk which is extremely small, even at full adult size. The word is usually, but not exclusively, applied to marine mollusks, although in addition, numerous species of land snails and freshwater mollusks also r ...

, 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 ...

Conradiidae Conradiidae is a taxonomic family (created in 1987 by Golikov & Starobogatov) of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs or micromolluscs. These genera were previously included in the polyphyletic family Skeneidae. They belong with ...

.Bouchet, P. (2012). ''Crossea gatliffi'' Hedley, 1902. Accessed through:

World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scientific specialist ...

at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=596656 on 2012-09-01

Description

(Original description by Charles Hedley) The height of the shell attains 1.16 mm, its diameter 1.1 mm. The small, thin shell has a globose-conical shape with 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 and an elevated

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spires are ...

. The basal funicle is slightly developed. Its colour is white (perhaps bleached ?).

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 ...

: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 ...

shows fine, close spiral threads of which every fourth is larger. At irregular intervals incipient varices traverse the whorl. On the penultimate whorl the spiral sculpture is more coarse and distant. The umbilicus is narrow, bordered by a slight rib, which, continuing to the anterior extremity, is there notched by the pseudocanal. The

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 ...

is oval. The thin outer lip is everted. The thin shell, lack of longitudinal sculpture, tabulated whorls, and feeble basal funicule distinguish it.Hedley Charles (1902) Studies on Australian Mollusca. Part VI; Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales vol. 27 (1902)
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Distribution

This marine species is endemic to Australia. It occurs off the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

and

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_ ...

References

* Hedley, C. 1902. ''Studies on Australian Mollusca. Part VI.'' Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 27: 7-29 * Cotton, B.C. 1959. ''South Australian Mollusca. Archaeogastropoda.'' Handbook of the Flora and Fauna of South Australia. Adelaide : South Australian Government Printer 449 pp.

External links

To World Register of Marine Species
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5188542 gatliffi Gastropods described in 1902