''Ethaliella capillata'' 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 ...

, 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 ...

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 ...

Trochidae The Trochidae, common name top-snails or top-shells, are a family of various sized sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the subclass Vetigastropoda. This family is commonly known as the top-snails because in many species the shell resembles ...

, the top snails.Bouchet, P. (2014). Ethaliella capillata (Gould, 1862). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=732110 on 2014-07-01

Description

The height of the shell attains 4 mm, its diameter 8 mm. The small, smooth shell is convex on both sides. It is slender and angular. It is covered with green or rusty-brown lines that intersect in large numbers, and is ornate with bright striae. It consists of six planulate

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 that become sharp at the periphery. The sutures are scarcely impressed. The base of the shell is radially plicate. The umbilicus is small with a pale callus, surrounded by a rust-colored hollow. The small

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 rhomboid. The outer lip is acute.Otia conchologica: A. Gould, Descriptions of Shells and Mollusks from 1839 to 1862
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Distribution

This marine species occurs in the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...

References

* Higo, S., Callomon, P. & Goto, Y. (1999) ''Catalogue and Bibliography of the Marine Shell-Bearing Mollusca of Japan''. Elle Scientific Publications, Yao, Japan, 749 pp

External links

To World Register of Marine Species
{{Taxonbar, from=Q18354086 capillata Gastropods described in 1862