''Phos senticosus'', common name Common Pacific Phos or Thorny Phos, 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 ...

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 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 ...

Buccinidae The Buccinidae are a very large and diverse taxonomic family of large sea snails, often known as whelks or true whelks.Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S. (2010). Buccinidae. In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. A ...

, the true whelks.

Description

The shell size varies between 25 mm and 50 mm. The surface of the shell may be cream or reddish-brown, with one or two subsutural darker bands. The interior is white or pale purple. This shell has shouldered whorls, with strong axial ribs and a papillose surface. Outer lip is crenulate, with several strong lirae into the aperture. The ovate, oblong shell is rough, and slightly turreted. Its entire surface is apparently armed with small spires. The

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 ...

is pointed and composed of nine or ten rather convex

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, furnished with longitudinal folds or ribs, somewhat distant, and formed by the elevations of transverse striae, which are also cut transversely by other striae elevated and resembling sharp scales. These are a little more prominent upon the convexity of the longitudinal ribs than in their interstices, and it is their prolongation in this part, which causes them to resemble small spines. Its color is reddish, varied with fawn-colored or clear chestnut-brown spots. Oftentimes the lower whorl presents, towards its middle, a transverse brown band, the half only of which can be seen upon the upper whorls, the whole length of the sutures. 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 whitish, ovate, elongated, and narrowed towards its base. The outer

lip The lips are the visible body part at the mouth of many animals, including humans. Lips are soft, movable, and serve as the opening for food intake and in the articulation of sound and speech. Human lips are a tactile sensory organ, and can be ...

has a slight obliquity, relatively to the axis of the shell. It is slightly crenulated upon the lip, and furnished interiorly with fifteen or sixteen transverse striae which are continued even to the depth of the cavity. The emargination is very oblique, accompanied externally by a thick, rounded, and twisted varix, which, revolving around the axis, terminates below the folds of the

columella Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella (; Arabic: , 4 – ) was a prominent writer on agriculture in the Roman Empire. His ' in twelve volumes has been completely preserved and forms an important source on Roman agriculture, together with the wo ...

. This is slightly arcuated; one or two oblique folds are delineated at its base.Kiener (1840). General species and iconography of recent shells : comprising the Massena Museum, the collection of Lamarck, the collection of the Museum of Natural History, and the recent discoveries of travellers; Boston :W.D. Ticknor,1837
(described as ''Buccinum senticosum'')

Distribution

This species is found in Central Indo-West Pacific, off the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, V ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Specimens of this species were gathered by

Jose Rizal Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. * Jose ben Abin * Jose ben Akabya *Jose the Galile ...

Dapitan Dapitan, officially the City of Dapitan ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Dapitan; Subanon: ''Gembagel G'benwa Dapitan/Bagbenwa Dapitan cbk, Ciudad de Dapitan''), is a 3rd class component city in the province of Zamboanga del Norte, Philippines. According to ...

in 1894.: Miscellaneous Letters of Rizal; accessed : 2 Jan 2012
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Habitat

This common tropical sea snail lives intertidally on sand, at depths more than 50 m.

References

* Vine, P. (1986). ''Red Sea Invertebrates''. Immel Publishing, London. 224 pp * Fraussen K. & Poppe G.T. (2005) ''Revision of Phos and Antillophos (Buccinidae) from the Central Philippines''. Visaya 1(5): 76-115.

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Phos Senticosus Buccinidae