Oxymeris crenulata

Oxymeris crenulata, common name crenulate auger, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Terebridae, the auger snails.[1]

Oxymeris crenulata
Five views of a shell of Oxymeris crenulata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Caenogastropoda
clade Hypsogastropoda
clade Neogastropoda
Superfamily:
Conoidea
Family:
Terebridae
Genus:
Oxymeris
Species:
O. crenulata
Binomial name
Oxymeris crenulata
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms[1]
  • Acus crenulatus (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Buccinum crenulatum Linnaeus, 1758 (basionym)
  • Buccinum luteolum Chenu, 1845
  • Buccinum varicosum Gmelin, 1791
  • Subula crenulata (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Terebra crenulata (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Terebra crenulata var. booleyi Melvill & Sykes, 1898
  • Terebra fimbriata Deshayes, 1857
  • Terebra interlineata Deshayes, 1859
  • Terebra maculata Perry, 1811

The shell of this species has crenulations along the suture, hence the specific name.

Description

Adult shell size varies between 48 mm and 154 mm.

The ovate, conical shell is whitish, ashy or reddish, often with two brown bands which are sometimes interrupted. The spire is formed of seven or eight distinct whorls, flattened above, furnished with longitudinal, almost perpendicular folds, which are themselves intersected by striae visible only in the interstices of the folds, except towards the base, and upon the whorls at the top of the spire. The upper edge of the whorls is flattened, and bordered by rounded tubercles, which are separated from the longitudinal folds by a deep stria running below them. The ovate aperture is whitish, contracted at the top by a transverse fold of the left lip. The outer lip is emarginated at its upper edge, marked interiorly with transverse striae in great numbers. The left lip is obliterated and flattened at its summit. It gives rise from the middle to the base to a pretty thick, projecting callosity, in the form of a keel.

This species presents a great number of varieties. In young specimens the color is deeper. The transverse brown bands are more marked, and appear upon all the whorls. The shell has also, proportionally, a more globular form. Other specimens are of a uniform color, have the whorls strongly canaliculated, and the longitudinal folds more approximate.[2]

Distribution

This species is found in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean off Aldabra, Chagos, Madagascar, the Mascarene Basin and Tanzania, and in the Pacific Ocean off Mexico.

References
  1. WoRMS (2010). Oxymeris crenulata (Linnaeus, 1758). In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=564243 on 30 March 2011
  2. Kiener (1840). General species and iconography of recent shells : comprising the Massena Museum, the collection of Lamarck, the collection of the Museum of Natural History, and the recent discoveries of travellers; Boston :W.D. Ticknor,1837 (described as Buccinum crenulatum)
  • Bratcher T. & Cernohorsky W.O. (1987). Living terebras of the world. A monograph of the recent Terebridae of the world. American Malacologists, Melbourne, Florida & Burlington, Massachusetts. 240pp
  • Drivas, J. & M. Jay (1988). Coquillages de La Réunion et de l'île Maurice
  • Terryn Y. (2007). Terebridae: A Collectors Guide. Conchbooks & NaturalArt. 59pp + plates
  • Severns, M. (2011). Shells of the Hawaiian Islands - The Sea Shells. Conchbooks, Hackenheim. 564 pp.
  • photos of shells of Oxymeris crenulata
  • "Acus crenulatus". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
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