| Aesopus pallidulus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Shell of Aesopus pallidulus (holotype in the Australian Museum) | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Subclass: | Caenogastropoda |
| Order: | Neogastropoda |
| Family: | Columbellidae |
| Genus: | Aesopus |
| Species: | A. pallidulus |
| Binomial name | |
| Aesopus pallidulus (Hedley, 1906) | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Mitromorpha pallidula Hedley, 1906 (superseded combination) | |
Aesopus pallidulus is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Columbellidae, the dove snails.
Description
The length of the shell attains 4.6 mm, its diameter 1.5 mm.
(Original description) The shell is small and narrow with a fusiform shape, tapering to blunt ends. It consists of five oblique whorls, including a protoconch that comprises one and a half whorls. The shell is dull white with two narrow, pale brown spiral bands on the body whorl: one at the periphery and the other between the periphery and the siphonal canal. The lower band is more distinct, spreading over five ridges and furrows.
Sculpture: The dome-shaped protoconch features fine, closely spaced radial riblets, ending with a slight varix. The teleoconch begins abruptly with seven evenly spaced spiral ridges and equal furrows, which gradually increase in size and number. On the body whorl, the ridges total twenty-six, becoming smaller and more crowded towards the anterior. The ridges are square in cross-section, polished, and slightly narrower than the flat furrows, which are radially striated.
The aperture is narrow with an excavate columella. The anal sinus is indistinguishable, and the siphonal canal forms a notch.
Distribution
This marine species is endemic to Australia and occurs off New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria.
References
- ^ WoRMS. "Aesopus pallidulus (Hedley, 1906)". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- Hedley, C. (1906). Studies on Australian Mollusca. Part IX. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales. 30: 520–546
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- Gatliff, J.H. & Gabriel, C.J. 1922. Additions to and alterations in the catalogue of Victorian marine Mollusca. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria n.s. 34(2): 128–161
- Grove, S.J., Kershaw, R.C., Smith, B.J. & Turner, E. 2006. A Systematic List of the Marine Molluscs of Tasmania. Launceston, Tasmania : Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery 120 pp.
- Macpherson, J.H. & Gabriel, C.J. 1962. Marine molluscs of Victoria. Melbourne : Melbourne University Press & National Museum of Victoria 475 pp.
| Taxon identifiers | |
|---|---|
| Aesopus pallidulus | |