''Tegula melaleucos'' 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 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 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 ...

Tegulidae Tegulidae is a family of small to large sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Trochoidea (according to the taxonomy of the Gastropoda by Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005).Bouchet, P. (2013). Tegulidae Kuroda, Habe & Oyama, 1971. Access ...

.WoRMS (2012). ''Tegula melaleucos''. Accessed through:

World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scientific specialist ...

at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=575633 on 2012-09-01

Description

The size of the shell varies between 16 mm and 31 mm. The rather solid shell has a conical shape. The apex is obtuse. The shell is profoundly umbilicated. Its color is white, ornamented with oblique black flammules. The 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 show a coronal series of tubercles. They are carinated with a nodulose carina. They are channelled below the carina, and spirally bistriate. 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 bicarinate. The base of the shell is concentrically sulcate. 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 subrhomboid, with its upper part smooth. The columella is arcuate; terminating in two teeth. Characteristics of this species are: the whorls are divided by a nodose keel into a larger convex upper portion and a smaller channelled lower part. A second series of blunt tubercles adorns the upper edge of the whorls along the suture. Below there are slightly elevated striae. The body whorl has the base sharply separated by a second keel. The base is concentrically, rather deeply furrowed, the 6 furrows narrower than the intervening ridges. In the umbilicus, which perforates almost to the apex, all of the whorls are visible, encircled by an acute carina. The aperture is subquadrate, nacreous, smooth within, and has a groove indicating the place of the external keel. The columella is S-shaped, and ends in a blunt tooth, before which there is a small acute denticle. Above, the columellar plate is callous, and covers a small portion of the umbilicus. The pretty markings of the shell consist of oblique, regular wide black streaks, separated by spaces as broad as themselves, on a white ground.Tryon (1889), Manual of Conchology XI, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia
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Distribution

This species occurs in the Pacific Ocean between

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

and Northern

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

References

External links

To USNM Invertebrate Zoology Mollusca Collection

To World Register of Marine Species
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q7694785 melaleucos Gastropods described in 1844