''Cerithium echinatum'' is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), 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 ...
of small
sea snail, a
marine
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gastropod 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 es ...
in the
family
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Cerithiidae
Cerithiidae, common name the cerithiids or ceriths, is a large family of medium-sized marine gastropods in the clade Sorbeoconcha.
Distribution
Ceriths are found worldwide on sandy bottoms, reef flats or coral reef rock covered with sand ...
.
Description
This snail's shell has a short siphonal canal. The shell has spiral rows of bumps as well as reddish-brown dashes. It has been found at 53mm in size.
[Steyn, D.G. & Lussi, M. 2005. ''Offshore Shells of Southern Africa'' ]
Distribution
The distribution of ''Cerithium echinatum'' includes the Indo-Pacific.
[''Cerithium echinatum''](_blank)
sealifebase.org, accessed 9 January 2011.
It is found off the southern African coast at northern KwaZulu-Natal and Mozambique in 15-30m of water.
References
External links
* Image from Natural History Museum Rotterdam
Cerithiidae
Taxa named by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
Gastropods described in 1822
{{Cerithiidae-stub