''Comitas onokeana'' 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 ...
Pseudomelatomidae
Pseudomelatomidae is a family of predatory sea snails, marine gastropods included in the superfamily Conoidea (previously Conacea) and part of the Neogastropoda ( Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005).
In 1995 Kantor elevated the subfamily Pseudomelatominae ...
, the turrids and allies.
[MolluscaBase (2018). Comitas onokeana King, 1933. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=599031 on 2018-06-14] ''Comitas onokeana'' has a subspecies called ''Comitas onokeana vivens''.
Dell, 1956New Zealand Mollusca: ''Comitas onokeanus vivens''
/ref>
Description
The length of the shell attains 30 mm, its diameter 12 mm.
Distribution
This marine species is endemic to New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
. Fossils have been found in Tertiary
Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago.
The period began with the demise of the non- avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...
strata of southern Wairarapa
The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service t ...
References
King, L. C. "Tertiary molluscan faunas from the southern Wairarapa." Transactions of the New Zealand Institute. Vol. 63. 1933.
* Maxwell, P.A. (2009). Cenozoic Mollusca. pp. 232–254 in Gordon, D.P. (ed.) New Zealand inventory of biodiversity. Volume one. Kingdom Animalia: Radiata, Lophotrochozoa, Deuterostomia. Canterbury University Press, Christchurch.
* Powell, A.W.B. 1979: ''New Zealand Mollusca: Marine, Land and Freshwater Shells,'' Collins, Auckland
External links
*
*
Auckland Museum: ''Comitas onokeana''
onokeana
Gastropods described in 1933
Gastropods of New Zealand
{{Pseudomelatomidae-stub