''Babelomurex couturieri'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Muricidae Muricidae is a large and varied taxonomic family of small to large predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks, commonly known as murex snails or rock snails. With about 1,600 living species, the Muricidae represent almost 10% of the Ne ...

, the murex snails or rock snails.

Description

The length of the shell varies between and .

Distribution

This marine species occurs off

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...

New Britain New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from New Guinea by a northwest corner of the Solomon Sea (or with an island hop of Umboi the D ...

(in the

Bismarck Archipelago The Bismarck Archipelago (, ) is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. Its area is about 50,000 square km. History The first inhabitants o ...

) and Japan.

References

* Jousseaume, F., 1898. Description de coquilles nouvelles. Le Naturaliste 12: 22, sér. 2° série * Oliverio M. (2008) ''Coralliophilinae (Neogastropoda: Muricidae) from the southwest Pacific''. In: V. Héros, R.H. Cowie & P. Bouchet (eds), Tropical Deep-Sea Benthos 25. Mémoires du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle 196: 481–585. page(s): 540 * Kilburn R.N., Marais J.P. & Marais A.P. (2010) ''Coralliophilinae''. pp. 272–292, in: Marais A.P. & Seccombe A.D. (eds), Identification guide to the seashells of South Africa. Volume 1. Groenkloof: Centre for Molluscan Studies. 376 pp. * Severns M. (2011) ''Shells of the Hawaiian Islands - The Sea Shells''. Conchbooks, Hackenheim. 564 pp.

External links

MNHN, Paris: syntype
couturieri Gastropods described in 1898 {{Coralliophilinae-stub