''Pusionella valida'' 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
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 ...
Clavatulidae
Clavatulidae is a taxonomic family of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Conoidea. The family is not well differentiated morphologically.
Clavatulidae was raised, based on cladistic analysis, from subfamily to the family ...
.
Description
The size of an adult shell varies between 30 mm and 40 mm. The shell is smooth and ponderous. There are 11–12
whorls
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 d ...
, flatly rounded, with two or three striae around the upper portion, and several at the base of 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 ...
. The color of the shell is light yellowish brown.
George Washington Tryon
George Washington Tryon Jr. (20 May 1838 – 5 February 1888) was an American malacologist who worked at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia.
Biography
George Washington Tryon was the son of Edward K. Tryon and Adeline Savidt. ...
, Manual of Conchology vol. VI p. 234; 1884
Distribution
This species occurs in the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
. This ascription is uncertain as this marine species probably occurs from
West African
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Ma ...
to
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
References
Dautzenberg, Ph. - Mission Gruvel sur la còte occidentale d'Afrique; Paris :Masson et cie 1912, p. 8(described as ''Pusionella haasi'')
* Cernohorsky W. O. (1984). ''Systematics of the family Nassariidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda).'' Bulletin of the Auckland Institute and Museum 14: 1–356
* Gofas, S.; Afonso, J.P.; Brandào, M. (Ed.). (S.a.). ''Conchas e Moluscos de Angola = Coquillages et Mollusques d'Angola.
hells and molluscs of Angola'' Universidade Agostinho / Elf Aquitaine Angola: Angola. 140 pp
* Nolf F. (2010) ''Pusionella haasi Dautzenberg, 1912 a junior synonym of Pusionella valida (Dunker, 1852) (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Clavatulidae)''. Neptunea 9(4): 1–10
External links
*
Syntype in the MNHN, Paris
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pusionella Valida
valida
Gastropods described in 1852