''Strombus'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of medium to large

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 ...

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 ...

mollusc 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 esti ...

s 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 ...

Strombidae Strombidae, commonly known as the true conchs, is a taxonomic family of medium-sized to very large sea snails in the superfamily Stromboidea, and the Epifamily Neostromboidae. The term true conchs, being a common name, does not have an exact mea ...

, which comprises the true

conchs Conch () is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point at both ends). In North Ame ...

and their immediate relatives. The genus ''Strombus'' was named by Swedish Naturalist

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

in 1758. Around 50 living species were recognized, which vary in size from fairly small to very large. Six species live in the greater

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

region, including the queen conch, ''

Strombus gigas ''Aliger gigas,'' originally known as ''Strombus gigas'' or more recently as ''Lobatus gigas'', commonly known as the queen conch, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family of true conches, the Strombidae. This ...

'' (now usually known as ''Eustrombus gigas'' or ''Lobatus gigas''), and the West Indian fighting conch, ''

Strombus pugilis ''Strombus pugilis'', common names the fighting conch and the West Indian fighting conch, is a species of medium to large sea snail, a marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusk in the family (biology), family Strombidae, the true conchs. ''S. pu ...

''. However, since 2006, many species have been assigned to discrete genera. These new genera are, however, not yet found in most textbooks and collector's guides. Worldwide, several of the larger species are economically important as food sources; these include the endangered queen conch, which very rarely also produces a pink, gem-quality

pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

. In the geological past, a much larger number of species of ''Strombus'' existed. Fossils of species within this genus have been found all over the world in sediments from

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of th ...

Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million years ...

(age range: 140.2 million years ago to recent).Fossilworks
/ref> Of the living species, most are in the

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

and

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 ...

s. Many species of true conchs live on sandy bottoms among beds of

sea grass Seagrasses are the only flowering plants which grow in marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four families (Posidoniaceae, Zosteraceae, Hydrocharitaceae and Cymodoceaceae), all in the orde ...

in tropical waters. They eat

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...

and have a claw-shaped operculum.

Description

Anatomy

Like almost all shelled gastropods, conches have spirally constructed shells. Again, as is normally the case in many gastropods, this spiral shell growth is usually right-handed, but on very rare occasions it can be left-handed. True conches have long eye stalks, with colorful ring-marked eyes at the tips. The shell has a long and narrow aperture, and a short

siphonal canal The siphonal canal is an anatomical feature of the shells of certain groups of sea snails within the clade Neogastropoda. Some sea marine gastropods have a soft tubular anterior extension of the mantle called a siphon through which water is ...

, with another indentation near the anterior end called a stromboid notch. This notch is where one of the two eye stalks protrudes from the shell. The true conch has a foot ending in a pointed, sickle-shaped, operculum, which can be dug into the substrate as part of an unusual "leaping" locomotion. True conches grow a flared lip on their shells only upon reaching

sexual maturity Sexual maturity is the capability of an organism to reproduce. In humans it might be considered synonymous with adulthood, but here puberty is the name for the process of biological sexual maturation, while adulthood is based on cultural definitio ...

. This is called an alated outer lip or alation. Conches lay

eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

in long strands; the eggs are contained in twisted, gelatinous tubes. ''Strombus'' moves with a leaping motion.

Shell description

''Strombus'' shells have a flaring outer lip with a notch near the anterior end called the

stromboid notch The stromboid notch is an anatomical feature which is found in the shell of one taxonomic family of medium-sized to large sea snails, the conches. Marine gastropods in the family Strombidae have a notch in the edge of the shell aperture not far ...

through which the animal can protrude one of its stalked eyes.

Phylogeny

The phylogenetic relationships among the Strombidae have been mainly accessed in two different occasions, using two distinct methods. In a 2005

monograph A monograph is a specialist work of writing (in contrast to reference works) or exhibition on a single subject or an aspect of a subject, often by a single author or artist, and usually on a scholarly subject. In library cataloging, ''monograph ...

, Simone proposed a

cladogram A cladogram (from Greek ''clados'' "branch" and ''gramma'' "character") is a diagram used in cladistics to show relations among organisms. A cladogram is not, however, an evolutionary tree because it does not show how ancestors are related to d ...

(a tree of descent) based on an extensive

morpho The morpho butterflies comprise many species of Neotropical butterfly under the genus ''Morpho''. This genus includes more than 29 accepted species and 147 accepted subspecies, found mostly in South America, Mexico, and Central America. ''Morph ...

anatomical Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...

analysis of representatives of the

Aporrhaidae Aporrhaidae is a family of sea snails commonly called the "pelican's foot snails." The taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005Bouchet P. & Rocroi J.-P. (Ed.); Frýda J., Hausdorf B., Ponder W., Valdes A. & Warén A. 2005. ''Classif ...

, Strombidae,

Xenophoridae Xenophoridae, commonly called carrier shells, is a family of medium-sized to large sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the clade Littorinimorpha. According to the taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi (2005) the family Xenophor ...

, and

Struthiolariidae Struthiolariidae is a family of small to medium-sized sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the superfamily Stromboidea The Stromboidea, originally named the Strombacea by Rafinesque in 1815, is a superfamily of medium-sized to very large s ...

. However, according to Simone, only ''

Strombus gracilior ''Strombus gracilior'', common names the Eastern Pacific fighting conch, or the Panama fighting conch, is a species of medium to large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.Bouchet, P. (2011). Strombus ...

'', ''

Strombus alatus ''Strombus alatus'', the Florida fighting conch, is a species of medium-sized, warm-water sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. Distribution This conch occurs in the Western Atlantic Ocean from North ...

'', and ''

'', the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

, remained within ''Strombus''. In Simone's cladogram, these three species constituted a distinct group based on at least five synapomorphies (traits that are shared by two or more

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

and their

most recent common ancestor In biology and genetic genealogy, the most recent common ancestor (MRCA), also known as the last common ancestor (LCA) or concestor, of a set of organisms is the most recent individual from which all the organisms of the set are descended. The ...

). The remaining taxa were previously considered as

subgenera In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...

, and were elevated to genus level by Simone in the end of his analysis. In a different approach, Latiolais and colleagues (2006) proposed another cladogram that attempts to show the phylogenetic relationships of 34 species within the family Strombidae. The authors analysed 31 species in the genus ''Strombus'' and three species in the allied genus ''Lambis''. The cladogram was based on DNA sequences of both nuclear

histone H3 Histone H3 is one of the five main histones involved in the structure of chromatin in eukaryotic cells. Featuring a main globular domain and a long N-terminal tail, H3 is involved with the structure of the nucleosomes of the 'beads on a stri ...

and mitochondrial cytochrome-c oxidase I (COI) protein-coding

gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...

regions. In this proposed phylogeny, ''Strombus pugilis'', ''Strombus alatus'', '' Strombus granulatus'' and ''Strombus gracilior'' are closely related and appear to share a

common ancestor Common descent is a concept in evolutionary biology applicable when one species is the ancestor of two or more species later in time. All living beings are in fact descendants of a unique ancestor commonly referred to as the last universal comm ...

.Latiolais, J. M.; Taylor M. S.; Roy, K.; Hellberg, M. E. (2006). "A molecular phylogenetic analysis of strombid gastropod morphological diversity". ''

Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution ''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal of evolutionary biology and phylogenetics. The journal is edited by E.A. Zimmer. Indexing The journal is indexed in: *EMBiology *Journal Citation Reports *Scopus ...

'' 41: 436-444.
PDF

Species

This genus of sea snails used to comprise about 50 species,Cob, Z. C. ''et al. '' (2009)
"Species Description and Distribution of ''Strombus'' (Mollusca: Strombidae) in Johor Straits and its Surrounding Areas"
''Sains Malaysiana'' 38 (1): 39–46. 38 of them occurring in the

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

region. Species within the genus ''Strombus'' include: * ''

Gmelin Gmelin may refer to: * Gmelin's test, a chemical test * Gmelin database, a German handbook/encyclopedia of inorganic compounds initiated by Leopold Gmelin People * Carl Christian Gmelin (1762–1837), German botanist, author of ''Flora Badensis ...

, 1791 * ''

'' Sowerby, 1825 * ''

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

1758 Events January–March * January 1 – Swedish biologist Carl Linnaeus (Carl von Linné) publishes in Stockholm the first volume (''Animalia'') of the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'', the sta ...

* '' Strombus fragilis'' (Röding, 1798) ;Extinct species Strombidae - Strombus radix

Extinct species within this genus include: * †''Strombus arayaensis'' Landau and Marques da Silva 2010 * †''Strombus bifrons'' Sowerby 1850 * †''Strombus contortus'' Forbes 1846 * †''Strombus coronatus'' Defrance 1827 * †''Strombus cossmanni'' Dey 1961 * †''Strombus daviesi'' Dey 1961 * †''Strombus evergladesensis'' Petuch 1991 * †''Strombus floridanus'' Mansfield 1930 * †''Strombus glaber'' Martin 1879 * †''Strombus herklotsi'' Martin 1879 * †''Strombus inflatus'' Martin 1879 * †''Strombus javanus'' Martin 1879 * †''Strombus junghuhni'' Martin 1879 * †''Strombus labiatus'' Röding 1798 * †''Strombus lindae'' Petuch 1991 * †''Strombus mekranicus'' Vredenburg 1925 * †''Strombus proximus'' Sowerby 1850 * †''Strombus sedanensis'' Martin 1899 * †''Strombus triangulatus'' Martin 1879 * †''Strombus uncatus'' Forbes 1846 * †''Strombus urceus '' Linnaeus 1758 * †''

Strombus vomer ''Strombus'' is a genus of medium to large sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Strombidae, which comprises the true conchs and their immediate relatives. The genus ''Strombus'' was named by Swedish Naturalist Carl Linnaeus in ...

'' Röding 1798 ; Species brought into synonymy : * ''Strombus accipiter'' Dillwyn, 1817 : synonym of '' Lobatus costatus'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus aurisdianae'' Linnaeus, 1759: synonym of ''

Euprotomus aurisdianae ''Euprotomus aurisdianae'', common name the Diana conch, is a species of small to medium-sized sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus bituberculatus'' Lamarck, 1822 : synonym of ''

Lobatus raninus ''Lobatus raninus'', common name the hawk-wing conch, is a species of medium to large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.Bouchet, P. (2010). Lobatus raninus (Gmelin, 1791). Accessed through: World Regi ...

'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus boletus'' Röding, P.F., 1798: synonym of ''

Clionella sinuata ''Clionella sinuata'', common name the ribbed turrid, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Clavatulidae. Fossils of this species have been reported from Pleistocene localities on the west coast of South Africa. D ...

'' (Born, 1778) * ''Strombus bulla'' Röding, 1798: synonym of ''

Euprotomus bulla ''Euprotomus bulla'', common name : the Bubble Conch, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. Description The shell size varies between 48 mm and 90 mm. Distribution This s ...

'' (Röding, 1798) * ''Strombus canarium'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of ''

Laevistrombus canarium ''Laevistrombus canarium'' ( commonly known as the dog conch or by its better-known synonym, ''Strombus canarium'') is a species of edible sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Strombidae (true conches). Known from illustrations in ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus costatus aguayoi'' Jaume & del Valle, 1947 : synonym of '' Lobatus costatus'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus decorus'' (Röding, 1798): synonym of '' Conomurex decorus'' (Röding, 1798) * ''Strombus dehelensis'': synonym of '' Conomurex fasciatus'' (Born, 1778) * ''Strombus dentatus'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of '' Tridentarius dentatus'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus epidromis'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of '' Labiostrombus epidromis'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus erythrinus'' is a synonym for '' Canarium erythrinum'' Dillwyn, 1817 * ''Strombus fasciatus'' Born, 1778: synonym of ''

Persististrombus latus ''Thetystrombus latus'', commonly known as the Bubonian conch, is a species of sea snail, a marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusk in the family (biology), family Strombidae, the true conchs.MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Thetystrombu ...

'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus fusiformis'' is a synonym for '' Canarium fusiforme'' Sowerby, 1842 * ''Strombus galeatus'' Swainson, 1823: synonym of ''

Titanostrombus galeatus ''Titanostrombus galeatus'', commonly known as the Eastern Pacific giant conch, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs and their allies.MolluscaBase eds. (2020). MolluscaBase. Ti ...

'' (Swainson, 1823) * ''Strombus gallus'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of '' Aliger gallus'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus gibberulus'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of ''

Gibberulus gibberulus ''Gibberulus gibberulus'', common name the humpbacked conch, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. There are two subspecies : * ''Gibberulus gibberulus albus'' ( Mörch, 1850) * ''G ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus gigas'' is a synonym for ''

Eustrombus gigas ''Aliger gigas,'' originally known as ''Strombus gigas'' or more recently as ''Lobatus gigas'', commonly known as the queen conch, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family of true conches, the Strombidae. This s ...

'' L., 1758 * ''Strombus guidoi'' Man in t'Veld & De Turck, 1998: synonym of ''Laevistrombus canarium guidoi'' (Man in 't Veld & De Turck, 1998) * ''Strombus goliath'' Schröter, 1805 : synonym of ''

Lobatus goliath ''Titanostrombus goliath'', previously known as ''Lobatus goliath'' and ''Strombus goliath'', common name the goliath conch, is a species of very large edible sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. ''T. ...

'' (Schröter, 1805) * ''Strombus haemastoma'' Sowerby, 1842: synonym of '' Canarium haemastoma'' (Sowerby II, 1842) * ''Strombus hickeyi'' Willan, 2000: synonym of ''

Dolomena hickeyi ''Dolomena hickeyi'' is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs. Description The shell grows to a length of 55 mm. Distribution This species is distributed along the Philippines and ...

'' (Willan, 2000) * ''Strombus inermis'' Swainson, 1822 : synonym of '' Lobatus costatus'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus integer'' Swainson, 1823 : synonym of '' Lobatus costatus'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus jeffersonia'' Van Hyning, 1945 : synonym of '' Lobatus costatus'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus labiatus'' is a synonym for '' Canarium labiatum'' Röding, 1798 * ''Strombus labiosus'' Gray in Wood, 1828: synonym of '' Dolomena labiosa'' (Wood, 1828) * ''Strombus latus'' Gmelin, 1791: synonym of ''

'' (Gmelin, 1791) * ''Strombus lentiginosus'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of '' Lentigo lentiginosus'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus listeri'' Gray, 1852: synonym of '' Mirabilistrombus listeri'' (Gray, 1852) * ''Strombus luhuanus'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of '' Conomurex luhuanus'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus magolecciai'' Macsotay & Villarroel, 2001: synonym of ''Lobatus magolecciai'' (Macsotay & Campos, 2001) *'' Strombus marginatus'' C. Linnaeus, 1758 : synonym of ''

Margistrombus marginatus ''Margistrombus marginatus'', common name: the Marginate Conch, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.Bouchet, P. (2011). Margistrombus marginatus (Linnaeus, 1758). Accessed through: ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus mutabilis'' Swainson, 1821: synonym of '' Canarium mutabile'' (Swainson, 1821) * ''Strombus oldi'' Emerson, 1965: synonym of '' Tricornis oldi'' (Emerson, 1965) * ''Strombus persicus'' (Swainson, 1821): synonym of '' Conomurex persicus'' (Swainson, 1821) * ''Strombus plicatus'' Röding, 1798: synonym of '' Dolomena plicata'' (Röding, 1798) * ''Strombus sinuatus'' Humphrey, 1786: synonym of '' Sinustrombus sinuatus'' ( ightfoot 1786) * ''Strombus terebellatus'' Sowerby, 1842: synonym of '' Terestrombus terebellatus'' (G.B. Sowerby II, 1842) * ''Strombus tricornis'' (Humphrey, 1786): synonym of '' Tricornis tricornis'' (Lightfoot, 1786) * ''Strombus urceus'' Linnaeus, 1758: synonym of ''

Canarium urceus ''Canarium urceus'' is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae Strombidae, commonly known as the true conchs, is a taxonomic family of medium-sized to very large sea snails in the superfamily Stromboide ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus ustulatus'' (Schumacher, 1817): synonym of Canarium urceus urseus (Linnaeus, 1758) * ''Strombus variabilis'' Swainson, 1820: synonym of '' Dolomena variabilis'' (Swainson, 1820) * ''Strombus wilsoni'' Abbott, 1967: synonym of '' Canarium wilsonorum'' (Abbott, 1967) * ''Strombus wilsonorum'' Abbott, 1967: synonym of '' Canarium wilsonorum'' (Abbott, 1967) * ''Strombus yerburyi'' E. A. Smith, 1891: synonym of ''Dolomena plicata yerburyi'' (E. A. Smith, 1891) * ''Strombus zonatus'' Wood, 1828: synonym of '' Cerithium zonatum'' (W. Wood, 1828)

References

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q858772 Strombidae Extant Berriasian first appearances Berriasian genus first appearances