Turbinella

Turbinella
A live individual of Turbinella laevigata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
(unranked): clade Caenogastropoda
clade Hypsogastropoda
clade Neogastropoda
Superfamily: Muricoidea
Family: Turbinellidae
Subfamily: Turbinellinae
Genus: Turbinella
Lamarck, 1799[1]
Type species
Voluta pyrum Linnaeus, 1767
species

See text

Synonyms[2]

Buccinella Perry, 1811

Turbinella is a genus of very large sea snails with an operculum, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Turbinellidae. [2]

These species are sometimes known as "chanks" or "chank shells". One species in this genus is the sacred chank, Turbinella pyrum; see "Shankha" for the cultural and religious use of the shell of that species.

Distribution

Species in this genus are found world-wide, mostly in tropical shallow waters.

Description

Most species have massive shells with three or four prominent columellar plicae.

Species

Hindu priest blowing a trumpet made out of a large shell of Turbinella pyrum, in Tirupati, India

Species within the genus Turbinella include:

Species brought into synonymy 
Species inquerenda

References

  1. Lamarck (1799). Mém. Soc. Hist. nat. Paris 73.
  2. 1 2 Bouchet, P. (2011). Turbinella Lamarck, 1799. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=204588 on 2011-04-27

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, October 22, 2012. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.