''Exomilus telescopialis'' 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 ...

mollusk in the family

Raphitomidae Raphitomidae is a family of small to medium-sized sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Conoidea.Bouchet P. & Rocroi J.-P. (Ed.) (2005). "Classification and nomenclator of gastropod families". ''Malacologia'' 47(1-2). . 39 ...

Description

The length of the shell attains 4.5 mm, its diameter 1.25 mm. (Original description) The minute shell is thin. It contains six

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, including the protoconch. The protoconch consists of whorls, smooth, with deep impressed suture. The apex is exserted. The whorls of the spire are sloping, nearly straight, gradated, angled at junction of posterior and middle fourth. Behind this the whorl is bevelled to the suture, which is distinct and impressed. The whorls are sculptured with spiral lirae, four to six in front of the angle, two behind it, flatly rounded, equidistant, wider than the interspaces. The Longitudinal lirae are numerous, equidistant, about 20 in the penultimate whorl, narrower than the interspaces. In some specimens crossing the spiral lirae and wider than them, generally most marked and forming conspicuous costae in the second and third spire-whorls. In others they are narrower, crossed by the spiral lirae, giving a cancellated appearance. 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 ...

is nearly cylindrical, angled a little below the suture and again at the periphery, below which it is excavately contracted to the base. It is provided with spiral lirae, two behind the upper angle, about seven between the angles, and nine or ten below, the most valid forming a minute carina at the lower angle, crossing or crossed by 18 to 20 wider or narrower longitudinal lirae continued to the base, though less conspicuous here. The aperture is elongately rhomboidal and wider anteriorly. The outer lip is simple, thin, crenulated, with a well-marked semi-circular sinus from the posterior angulation to the suture. The lip is lip slanting obliquely from the carina to the anterior notch. The columella is straight. The inner lip is inconspicuous except behind, where there is a columellar callus, from which springs the acute upper boundary of the sinus. The notch is simple, anterior extremity truncated obliquely to the left. Ornament uniform, rusty-brown or white. Verco, J.C. 1896. ''Descriptions of new species of marine Mollusca of South Australia. Part I.; Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia v. 20 (1895-1896)
public domain.

Distribution

This marine species is endemic to Australia and occurs off South Australia and Victoria

References

* Hedley, C. 1922. ''A revision of the Australian Turridae.'' Records of the Australian Museum 13(6): 213-359, pls 42-56 * Ludbrook, N.H. 1978. ''Quaternary molluscs of the western part of the Eucla Basin''. Bulletin of the Geological Survey of Western Australia 125: 1-286

External links

* * Raphitomidae Gastropods of Australia Gastropods described in 1896 {{Raphitomidae-stub