''Austrocochlea constellata'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

sea snail Sea snails are slow-moving marine (ocean), marine gastropod Mollusca, molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the Taxonomic classification, taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguishe ...

, a marine

gastropod Gastropods (), commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, freshwater, and fro ...

mollusk Mollusca is a phylum of protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Trochidae The Trochidae, common name top-snails or top-shells, are a family of various sized sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the subclass Vetigastropoda. This family is commonly known as the top-snails because in many species the shell resembles ...

, the top snails.Bouchet, P. (2012). ''Diloma constellata'' Souverbie, 1863. Accessed through:

World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=546859 on 2012-11-23 This is a species inquerenda.

Description

The height of the shell attains 9 mm, its diameter 10 mm. The oblique, imperforate shell has an orbiculate-conic shape and is slightly elevated. The base of the shell is very wide. The shell is longitudinally very obliquely subtly striate, and marked with a few spiral subimpressed lines which are sometimes obsolete, leaving the surface smooth. The color is plumbeous ashen, often with a pink tinge, speckled closely with white dots, and encircled with two dark bands which are articulated with larger spots of white. The sutures are impressed. The five

whorl A whorl ( or ) is an individual circle, oval, volution or equivalent in a whorled pattern, which consists of a spiral or multiple concentric objects (including circles, ovals and arcs). In nature File:Photograph and axial plane floral diagra ...

s are subconvex, the last forming the greater portion of the shell. They are compressed, obtusely angulated, depressed below the suture. The surface of the base is almost entirely occupied by the parieto-columellar area. The very oblique

aperture In optics, the aperture of an optical system (including a system consisting of a single lens) is the hole or opening that primarily limits light propagated through the system. More specifically, the entrance pupil as the front side image o ...

is pearly and iridescent inside. The thin outer

lip The lips are a horizontal pair of soft appendages attached to the jaws and are the most visible part of the mouth of many animals, including humans. Mammal lips are soft, movable and serve to facilitate the ingestion of food (e.g. sucklin ...

acute, and continued on the base in an angle which bounds the columellar area. The thin, white

columella Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella (, Arabic: ) was a prominent Roman writer on agriculture in the Roman Empire. His in twelve volumes has been completely preserved and forms an important source on Roman agriculture and ancient Roman cuisin ...

is subhorizontal, very wide, subconcave, and bounded by a narrow brown streak outside. There is considerable variation in the color pattern. Unlike most of the species in this genus, the base is not lined with a white thickened continuation of the columella.Tryon (1889), Manual of Conchology XI, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia
(described as ''Monodonta constellata'')

Distribution

This marine species occurs off

New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...

References

External links

Biodiversity Heritage Library (1 publication)

Encyclopedia of Life

World Register of Marine Species
* Donald K.M., Kennedy M. & Spencer H.G. (2005) ''The phylogeny and taxonomy of austral monodontine topshells (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Trochidae), inferred from DNA sequences''. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 37: 474-483 {{Taxonbar, from=Q5277011 constellata Gastropods described in 1863