''Eulima glabra'' (Dutch: ''grote glanshoren'') is a species of small parasitic

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 in the family Eulimidae. The species is one of a number within the genus ''

Eulima ''Eulima'' is a genus of small, ectoparasitic sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Eulimidae. ''Eulima'' is the type genus of the family Eulimidae. Description The genus appeared early in the Secondary and became abundant in form ...

''.da Costa, 1778. Gofas, S.; Le Renard, J.; Bouchet, P. (2001). Mollusca, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 180-213 (look up in IMIS). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=139805 on 2013-02-02.Petit R.E. (2009) George Brettingham Sowerby, I, II & III: their conchological publications and molluscan taxa. Zootaxa 2189: 1–218.

Description

The length of the shell measures approximately 10 mm. The shell is tall, sharply pointed, slender, very glossy and nearly transparent; whorls flat-sided, sutures nearly invisible; no ornamentation. The aperture is a long and narrow, pointed apically; outer lip nearly straight in side view and forming a shallow, open canal basally. The shell has up to 12 Whorls, 3 or 4 belonging to the protoconch, but these, which are a little tumid, are often broken off. The last whorl is slender and, in apertural view, the outer lip continues the profile of the spire. Its edge is rounded, not sharp. There are a few irregular growth lines on the shell and occasional prosocline and nearly straight markings which show former positions of the outer lip. The last whorl occupies about half of the shell's height, the aperture a third.

Color

The vast majority of specimens appear as yellow-white, with orange-brown bands. Usually there are 3 spiral bands on each whorl of the spire, up to 6 on the last whorl of the shell. Some brown spiral lines, especially those at the periphery, may be represented by separate streaks which curve axially.

Soft parts

The head is a thin ledge carrying the opening of an introvert on its underside and a pair of tentacles anteriorly. These are long and tapering, each with an eye behind and medial to its base. A pallial tentacle arises from the mantle edge on the right. In males (small, young animals) a penis with an open seminal groove on its dorsal side arises behind the right tentacle; in females (larger, older) a vestige of this persists. The foot is large but narrow, broad anteriorly, with conspicuous opercular lobes behind. The animal is white.

Habitat

''Eulima glabra'' is ectoparasitic on echinoderms, probably ophiuroids, and live sublittorally to depths of approximately 200 m. The animals are consecutive

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrate ...

s and the life history probably includes a free veliger stage.

Distribution

This marine species ranges from the Mediterranean to the British Isles where it has been found from south-west England, the south and west of Ireland, as far north as

Shetland Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

; not in the southern North Sea. This species occurs in the following locations: * British Isles * European waters (ERMS scope) * Greek Exclusive Economic Zone * Irish Exclusive Economic Zone * United Kingdom Exclusive Economic Zone

References

External links

Forbes, E. (1838). Malacologia Monensis: a catalogue of the Mollusca inhabiting the Isle of Man and the neighbouring sea. Edinburgh: J. Carfrae and son pp. XII + 63 + 3 pl

Donovan E. (1799-1804). The natural history of British shells: including figures and descriptions of all the species hitherto discovered in Great Britain, systematically arranged in the Linnean manner, with scientific and general observations on each. 5 volumes, London, printed for the Author, and for F. and C. Rivington, 180 plates with unpaginated text.

Da Costa, Mendes E. (1778). Historia naturalis testaceorum Britanniæ, or, the British conchology; containing the descriptions and other particulars of natural history of the shells of Great Britain and Ireland: illustrated with figures. In English and French. - Historia naturalis testaceorum Britanniæ, ou, la conchologie Britannique; contenant les descriptions & autres particularités d'histoire naturelle des coquilles de la Grande Bretagne & de l'Irlande: avec figures en taille douce. En anglois & françois., i-xii, 1-254, i-vii, [1], Pl. I-XVII. London. (Millan, White, Emsley & Robson)

Sowerby, G. B., I; Sowerby, G. B., II. (1832-1841). The conchological illustrations or, Coloured figures of all the hitherto unfigured recent shells. London, privately published

Pennant, T. (1777). British Zoology, vol. IV. Crustacea. Mollusca. Testacea. London. i-viii, 1-154, Plates 1-93

Payraudeau B. C. (1826). Catalogue descriptif et méthodique des Annelides et des Mollusques de l'île de Corse. Paris, 218 pp. + 8 pl.

Jeffreys J.G. 1884. On the Mollusca procured during the 'Lightning' and 'Porcupine' expeditions, 1868-70. (Part VIII). Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1882: 341-372, pl. 26-28
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5409150 glabra Gastropods described in 1778 Taxa named by Emanuel Mendes da Costa