Common nutmeg

The common nutmeg, Cancellaria reticulata, is a species of medium-sized to large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cancellariidae, the nutmeg snails.[1]

Common nutmeg
Five views of a shell of Cancellaria reticulata Linnaeus, 1767
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Caenogastropoda
clade Hypsogastropoda
clade Neogastropoda
Superfamily:
Cancellarioidea
Family:
Cancellariidae
Genus:
Cancellaria
Species:
C. reticulata
Binomial name
Cancellaria reticulata
Synonyms[1]
  • Buccinella canulata Perry, 1811
  • Cancellaria (Cancellaria) reticulata (Linnaeus, 1767)
  • Voluta reticulata Linnaeus, 1767

Distribution

This species lives in the western Atlantic Ocean from North Carolina to Brazil, in the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Lesser Antilles.

Habitat

The common nutmeg lives in offshore waters. The empty shell is occasionally washed onto ocean beaches.

Life habits

This species is probably carnivorous because its radula is ideal for feeding on soft-bodied animals. The life habits of this species are not known, but one species (Cancellaria cooperi) in the same family is an external parasite on rays.

Shell description

The shell of this species grows up to 2.5 inches in length. It has a rough surface with many spiral cords crossing many axial ribs, resulting in a lattice or beaded pattern. The aperture is elongate, with a short canal. The inner margin with two strong, thin spiral ridges running into its aperture (the upper ridge is stronger than the lower ridge).

There is no operculum.

The common nutmeg's coloration is banded or splotched with tints of cream and orange or brown.

References
  1. Bouchet, P. (2010). Cancellaria reticulata (Linnaeus, 1767). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=515781 on 2012-04-08
  • Abbott, R. Tucker, 1986. Seashells of North America, St. Martin's Press, New York
  • Common Nutmeg
  • NC Sea Grant
  • Petit, R.E. & Harasewych, M.G. (2005) Catalogue of the superfamily Cancellarioidea Forbes and Hanley, 1851 (Gastropoda: Prosobranchia)- 2nd edition. Zootaxa, 1102, 3-161. NIZT 682
  • Hemmen J. (2007). Recent Cancellariidae. Wiesbaden, 428pp.
  • Rosenberg, G., F. Moretzsohn, and E. F. García. 2009. Gastropoda (Mollusca) of the Gulf of Mexico, Pp. 579–699 in Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico–Origins, Waters, and Biota. Biodiversity. Texas A&M Press, College Station, Texas.
  • The Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum entry at:
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