Haustrum scobina

Haustrum scobina
Haustrum scobina
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Caenogastropoda clade Hypsogastropoda clade Neogastropoda
Superfamily:	Muricoidea
Family:	Muricidae
Subfamily:	Haustrinae
Genus:	Haustrum
Species:	H. scobina
Binomial name
Haustrum scobina (Quoy & Gaimard, 1833)
Synonyms[1]
Purpura albomarginata Deshayes, 1839 Purpura bicolor Lesson, 1842 Purpura rugosa Quoy & Gaimard, 1833 Purpura scobina Quoy & Gaimard, 1833 Purpura scobina var. rutila Suter, 1899 Purpura tristis Dunker in Dunker & Zelabor, 1866 Lepsiella scobina

Haustrum scobina, or the oyster borer, is a species of predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Muricidae, the murex snails or rock snails.^[1] Oyster borers use a mucous layer that surrounds the entrance to their shell to prevent dessiccation in the midlittoral and high tidal zones. Oyster Borers are frequently found in crevices which have more protection from predators, higher water availability, lower temperature, extremes in salinity and protection from the sun and wind.

Distribution

It generally prefers inter-tidal zones, such as the Hauraki Gulf of Auckland, New Zealand.^[2]

References

1. Haustrum scobina (Quoy & Gaimard, 1833).  Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 24 April 2010.
2. "Shellfish Identification Guide". Hauraki Gulf Forum. http://www.arc.govt.nz/albany/fms/main/Documents/Environment/Coastal%20and%20marine/Shellfish%20Identification%20Guide.pdf.

Further reading

• Miller M & Batt G, Reef and Beach Life of New Zealand, William Collins (New Zealand) Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1973
• Powell A. W. B., New Zealand Mollusca, William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979 ISBN 0-00-216906-1
• Beu, A. G. 1990. Molluscan generic diversity of New Zealand Neogene stages: extinction and biostratigraphic events. - Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 77: 279-288.
• Tan, K. S. 2003. Phylogenetic analysis and taxonomy of some southern Australian and New Zealand Muricidae (Mollusca: Neogastropoda). - Journal of Natural History 37: 911–1028.