''Pictobalcis'' is a monotypic

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

sea snails Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the a ...

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 ...

Eulimidae Eulimidae is a family of very small parasitic sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Vanikoroidea. Description These small parasitic snails live on (or in some cases in) the bodies of echinoderms such as sea cucumber ...

.Bouchet, P. (2014). Pictobalcis. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=537157 on 2014-12-25 As of 2025, the only known species is ''P. articulata''.

Description

''Pictobalcis articulata'' is the largest eulimid occurring in its range, with a high turretellid-like polished shell patterned in wavy vertical lines of chestnut brown or dark red on a background of cream to dark red, up to 26mm in length. Unlike other eulimids this species is coastal, from low intertidal down to 30 metres deep. The animal is

ectoparasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...

like other genera in the family, but due to its rarity it has not been studied and the host or hosts it depends on are not known. Empty shells are washed into tide pools or found inhabited by

hermit crab Hermit crabs are anomuran decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea that have adapted to occupy empty scavenged mollusc shells to protect their fragile exoskeletons. There are over 800 species of hermit crab, most of which possess an a ...

Distribution

Occurs in Australia off

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

and

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, also the north-eastern coast of the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-larges ...

and the

Kermadec Islands The Kermadec Islands ( mi, Rangitāhua) are a subtropical island arc in the South Pacific Ocean northeast of New Zealand's North Island, and a similar distance southwest of Tonga. The islands are part of New Zealand. They are in total ...

, New Zealand, and

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island (, ; Norfuk: ''Norf'k Ailen'') is an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head and about from Lord Howe Island. Together w ...

. Has been reported from Japan and the Philippines, and empty shells have been reportedly found in New Caledonia.

References

* Laseron, C. 1955. ''Revision of the New South Wales eulimoid shells.'' The Australian Zoologist 12(2): 83-107, pls 1-3, figs 1-78 * Warén A. (1984) ''A generic revision of the family Eulimidae (Gastropoda, Prosobranchia)''. Journal of Molluscan Studies suppl. 13: 1-96.

External links

Marine Species Identification Portal
Eulimidae {{Eulimidae-stub