''Spectamen semireticulatum'' 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 ...

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

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 ...

Solariellidae Solariellidae is a family (biology), family of small sea snails, marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Trochoidea (superfamily), Trochoidea (according to the Taxonomy of the Gastropoda (Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005), taxonomy of ...

.Rosenberg, G. (2012). ''Solariella semireticulata'' (Suter, 1908). 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=598240 on 2012-12-03

Description

(Original description by H. Suter) The height of the shell attains 3.2 mm, its diameter 5 mm. The small, thin and fragile, umbilicate shell has a depressed turbinate shape. It is spirally lirate. The

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

consistis of numerous slightly elevated and rounded spiral cinguli; 6 on the penultimate, about 16 on the

body whorl The body whorl is part of the morphology (biology), morphology of the gastropod shell, shell in those gastropod mollusks that possess a coiled shell. The term is also sometimes used in a similar way to describe the shell of a cephalopod mollusk ...

. Those on the upper surface show a fine spiral thread in the interstices, which are of about the same width as the riblets. The cinguli on the outer side of the base are finer and closer together. On the inner side 3 broad slightly crenulated ribs surround the

umbilicus Umbilicus may refer to: *The navel or belly button *Umbilicus (mollusc), a feature of gastropod, Nautilus and Ammonite shell anatomy *Umbilicus (plant), ''Umbilicus'' (plant), a genus of over ninety species of perennial flowering plants *Umbilicus ...

, which is also prominently spirally ribbed. The 2 cinguli below the suture are crossed and beaded by strong and sharp equidistant radiate riblets, dividing the interstices into regular squares. The remainder of the

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 show fine growth lines. The colour of the shell is whitish, light horny. The

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...

is low, with convex outlines, very little higher than the

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 ...

. The

apex The apex is the highest point of something. The word may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional entities * Apex (comics) A-Bomb Abomination Absorbing Man Abraxas Abyss Abyss is the name of two characters appearing in Ameri ...

is rather blunt. The

protoconch A protoconch (meaning first or earliest or original shell) is an embryonic or larval shell which occurs in some classes of molluscs, e.g., the initial chamber of an ammonite or the larval shell of a gastropod. In older texts it is also called " ...

is small, globular and consists of one smooth and convex whorl. The four whorls increase rather rapidly. They are somewhat flattened below the suture, then convex. The base of the shell is convex. The suture is subcanaliculate. The aperture is circular and slightly iridescent within. The

peristome Peristome (from the Greek language, Greek ''peri'', meaning 'around' or 'about', and ''stoma'', 'mouth') is an anatomical feature that surrounds an opening to an organ or structure. Some plants, fungi, and shelled gastropods have peristomes. In mo ...

is sharp, the ends approaching and nearly meeting. They are united by a white parietal callosity. The

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 vertical, arcuate, and slightly expanded. The

is about one-third of the diameter, deep and scalar. Suter H. (1913-1915), Manual of New Zealand Mollusca; Wellington, N. Z. :J. Mackay, govt. printer,1913-1915
(described as ''Monilea semireticulata'')

Distribution

This marine species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to New Zealand and occurs off

Snares Island The Snares Islands (; officially Snares Islands / Tini Heke), known colloquially as The Snares, is a group of uninhabited islands lying about south of New Zealand's South Island and to the south-southwest of Stewart Island / Rakiura. The Snar ...

at a depth of 91 m.

References

* Powell, A.W.B. 1979: New Zealand Mollusca: Marine, Land and Freshwater Shells. Collins, Auckland 500p * Marshall, B.A. 1999: A revision of the Recent Solariellinae (Gastropoda: Trochoidea) of the New Zealand region. The Nautilus 113: 4-42

External links

Biodiversity Heritage Library (1 publication)

World Register of Marine Species

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7557010 Spectamen, semireticulatum Gastropods of New Zealand Gastropods described in 1908