Halistylus

Halistylus
Two shells of Halistylus columna
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Clade: Vetigastropoda
Superfamily: Trochoidea (superfamily)
Family: Trochidae
Genus: Halistylus
Dall, 1890
Type species
Cantharidus columna Dall, 1890

Halistylus is a genus of very small sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Trochidae, the top snails.[1]

Description

The small, polychromatic shell has a cylindrical shape. It is holostomatous, i.e. the aperture is rounded or entire, uninterrupted by the siphonal canal, notch, or by any other extension. The operculum is multispiral and coriaceous. There is no spiral sculpture. Such a cylindrical shape is rather uncommon in the family Trochidae. But the belonging of this genus to this family is certified by the shell structure, the pearly aperture and anatomical features.[2]

This genus was previously considered a subgenus of the genus Cantharidus Montfort

Species

Species within the genus Halistylus include:

Species brought into synonymy

References

External links

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