Linatella caudata

Linatella caudata
Linatella caudata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Caenogastropoda clade Hypsogastropoda clade Littorinimorpha
Superfamily:	Tonnoidea
Family:	Ranellidae
Subfamily:	Cymatiinae
Genus:	Linatella
Species:	L. caudata
Binomial name
Linatella caudata (Gmelin, 1791)
Synonyms[1]
Buccinum caudatum Gmelin, 1791 (basionym) Cassidaria cingulata Lamarck, 1822 Cymatium (Linatella) cingulatum (Lamarck, 1822) Cymatium (Linatella) cingulatum peninsulum M. Smith, 1937 Cymatium (Linatella) poulsenii Mörch, O.A.L., 1877 Cymatium cingulatum (Lamarck, 1822) Cymatium cutaceum (Lamarck, 1816) Cymatium floridanum Mansfield, W.C., 1930 Cymatium krenkeli Cox, 1930 Cymatium neptunia Garrard, T.A., 1963 Cymatium rostrata Mörch, O.A.L., 1852 Fusus cutaceus Lamarck, 1816 Fusus voigtii Anton, 1838 Galeodea cingulata Lamarck, J.B.P.A. de, 182 Linatella neptunia Garrard, 1963 Murex caudata Gmelin, 1791 Murex cutaceous Linnaeus, C., 1767 Nassaria hillae Nordsieck, F., 1968 Ranularia (Lagena) rostratus “Martini” Mörch, 1853 Triton (Linatella) poulsenii Mörch, 1877 Triton bantamensis Martin, K., 1895 Triton canaliferus Lamarck, 1822 Triton undosum Kiener, 1842 Tritonium chemnitzii Gray, J.E., 1839 Tritonium varicosum Link, 1807 Tritonocauda caudata (Gmelin, 1791) Tritonocauda caudata vulticula Iredale, 1936

Linatella caudata, common name : the Girdled triton or Poulsen's Triton,^[2] is a species of predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Ranellidae, the triton snails, triton shells or tritons.^[1]

Distribution

This species is very widespread (but uncommon). It is present in European waters, in the Mediterraneal Sea, in the Western Atlantic from South Carolina to Brazil, in the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean along Tanzania and in the Indo-West Pacific as far north as southern Japan.^[1][3][4]

Habitat

These sea snails are usually found in seagrass meadows. They live only on soft substrates on the shelf at depths of 20 to 200 m.^[5][6]

A shell of Linatella caudata from Sicily, on display at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano

Description

The size of an adult shell varies between 35 mm and 100 mm. These medium sized shells are extremely variable in size, thickness, prominence, quantity of flare of the outer lip and thickness and width of the inner lip. Also very variable are the spire height and the intensity of the surface coloration. Commonly they have an hairy appearance and are solid and thick and show a Tonna-like form and moderately tall spire, with a very weak sculpture of low, weakly convex surfaced, spiral cords. The whorls are weak shouldered. They lack obvious varices or only the terminal varix is developed. The outer lip is flared and slightly thickened, with weakly shouldered whorls. The anterior siphonal canal is moderately long.

The interior of outer lip flare has sixteen low transverse ridges. The exterior surface of the shell varies between cream to pale yellowish-brown, with irregular, narrow light and darker bands. The body of these sea snails are brownish with black spots.^[5][6][7][8]

Biology

These sea snails have been reported as feeding on Fan Shells (Pinna bicolor) and on the pearl oyster (Pinctada imbricata). Consequently they are considered a serious problem for the aquaculture of marine bivalves.^[5][9]

References

1. Linatella caudata (Gmelin, 1791). WoRMS (2010). Ranularia caudata (Gmelin, 1791). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.eu/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=141114 on 30 March 2011.
2. Linatella caudata at Hardy's Internet Guide to Marine Gastropods
3. Galli C.: WMSDB - Wolrdwide Mollusc Species Data Base
4. Discover life
5. Tritons & Trumpet Shell (Phylum Mollusca: Family Ranellidae) of Singapore
6. Revised descriptions of New Zealand Cenozoic Mollusca from Beu and Maxwell (1990)
7. Jan Delsing Biolib
8. Beu: Taxonomy of Gastropods from the families Ranellidae and Bursidae, 1986
9. Science Direct

External links

• Cote Bleue

Bibliography

• Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S. (2015). Cymatium cutaceum (Lamarck, 1816).
• Gofas, S.; Le Renard, J.; Bouchet, P. (2001). Mollusca, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 180–213
• Rolán E., 2005. Malacological Fauna From The Cape Verde Archipelago. Part 1, Polyplacophora and Gastropoda.
• Spry, J.F. (1961). The sea shells of Dar es Salaam: Gastropods. Tanganyika Notes and Records 56
• Turgeon, D. D., A. E. Bogan, E. V. Coan, W. K. Emerson, W. G. Lyons, W. Pratt, et al. (1988) Common and scientific names of aquatic invertebrates from the United States and Canada: mollusks, American Fisheries Society Special Publication 16
• Turgeon, D. D., J. F. Quinn, Jr., A. E. Bogan, E. V. Coan, F. G. Hochberg, W. G. Lyons, et al. (1998) Common and scientific names of aquatic invertebrates from the United States and Canada: Mollusks, 2nd ed., American Fisheries Society Special Publication 26