''Crepidula depressa'' 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), ...
of
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 ...
Calyptraeidae
The Calyptraeidae are a family of small to medium-sized marine prosobranch gastropods.MolluscaBase. Calyptraeidae Lamarck, 1809. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=141 on ...
, the slipper snails or slipper limpets, cup-and-saucer snails, and hat snails.
Distribution
''Crepidula depressa'' occurs along the Gulf coast of Texas and the Yucatán Peninsula, both the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of Florida at least as far north as Lake Worth on the Atlantic coast.
Description
The shell of C. depressa is generally flat and white, ranging from extremely recurved to somewhat convex depending on the habitat of the individual. Those from exposed substrates are often oval and convex. The septum is flat in convex shells and convex in recurved shells, with a notch on the right side where it attaches to the shell. There is also a depression in the center of the septal margin. Muscle scars are absent. The shell is white inside and out, rarely with pinkish-brown streaks. Length up to 4 cm. The translucent white body has opaque white on the tips on the tentacles and the lips and some white spots in the mantle and neck lappets. There is no black pigment on the foot and very little hint of yellow.
The maximum recorded
shell
Shell may refer to:
Architecture and design
* Shell (structure), a thin structure
** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses
Science Biology
* Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...
length is 20 mm.
Development
The small eggs produce typical planktotrophic veliger larvae with a smooth, almost planospiral shell at hatching. There are usually at least 100 eggs/capsule, but the number of eggs increases with female size. Average shell length at hatching is 255
μm
The micrometre (Commonwealth English as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American English), also commonly known by the non-SI term micron, is a unit of length in the International System ...
. The larvae take 3–4 weeks to grow to metamorphosis.
Habitat
Minimum recorded depth is 0 m.
Maximum recorded depth is 3 m.
This species lives on shells and inside shells inhabited by hermit crabs. Low intertidal to subtidal.
References
External links
* http://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Crepid_depressa.htm
* http://stri.si.edu/sites/collinlab/tree_species/details.php?id=3
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5184263
Calyptraeidae
Molluscs of the Atlantic Ocean
Gastropods described in 1822
Taxa named by Thomas Say