Tritia_corniculum

<i>Tritia corniculum</i>

Tritia corniculum

Species of gastropod

Tritia corniculum, common name the horn nassa, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Nassariidae, the Nassa mud snails or dog whelks.[2]

Quick Facts Tritia corniculum, Scientific classification ...

Spelling

Originally introduced in the binomen Buccinum corniculum, the specific epithet is to be considered a noun (meaning "a small horn on a soldier's helmet") and is invariant.

Description

The ovate, conical shell is thick, smooth, and pointed at its summit. Length varies between 8 mm (0.3 in) and 20 mm (0.8 in). The spire is composed of six or seven slightly distinct whorls. The suture is moderately deep. There are a few transverse striae at the base of the body whorl. The aperture is pretty large, ovate, violet-colored or chestnut, and dilated towards the middle. The outer lip is sharp and denticulated within. The left lip is thick and partially covers the columella in its whole extent. The epidermis is thin, of a greenish- or reddish-brown, and beneath are perceived transverse zones, with spots of a slate- or violet-gray color, along with a decurrent white band, articulated with brown or bay-colored spots upon the suture.[3]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Mediterranean Sea and in the Atlantic Ocean off West Africa and the Azores.

Tritia corniculum var. minor

  • Brown form
  • Spotted form

References

  1. [1]
    Olivi, G. 1792. Zoologia Adriatica. [ix] + 334 + xxxii pp., 9 pls.
  2. [2]
    Marshall, B. (2016). Tritia cornicula (Olivi, 1792). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=876831 on 2016-05-18
  3. [3]
    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 fasciolatum)
  • Cernohorsky W. O. (1984). Systematics of the family Nassariidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda). Bulletin of the Auckland Institute and Museum 14: 1–356
  • Gofas, S.; Le Renard, J.; Bouchet, P. (2001). Mollusca, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 180–213
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tritia corniculum.
  • "Nassarius (Gussonea) corniculus". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Tritia_corniculum, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.