| Aphanitoma locardi | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Shell of Aphanitoma locardi (holotype in the MNHN, Paris) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Subclass: | Caenogastropoda |
| Order: | Neogastropoda |
| Superfamily: | Conoidea |
| Family: | Borsoniidae |
| Genus: | Aphanitoma |
| Species: | A. locardi |
| Binomial name | |
| Aphanitoma locardi Bavay, 1906 | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
| |
Aphanitoma locardi is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Borsoniidae. [1]
Aphanitoma locardi was described in 1906 by Arthur Bavay from material collected during the expeditions of the research vessel Travailleur. At the time of its discovery, the genus Aphanitoma was believed to be extinct, known only from fossil records in the Tertiary deposits of Italy. Bavay noted that the species possesses characteristics intermediate between the families Pleurotomidae (where it was originally placed) and Mitridae, specifically regarding the structure of the columellar folds. [2]
In 1911, E. R. Sykes described specimens from the Porcupine Expedition as Mitra biconica. [3] The name was later recognised as a junior homonym of Mitra biconica Whitfield, 1865 and is therefore invalid. Subsequent revisions placed the species in the genus Aphanitoma, within the family Borsoniidae.
The holotype is housed in the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle (MNHN), Paris.
The shell is moderately sized and fusiform (spindle-shaped), with a conical spire composed of six to seven whorls. The protoconch is smooth. The teleoconch whorls are rather flattened with a well-marked suture and are sculptured with numerous densely set spiral striae, crossed by weak longitudinal ribs that become obsolete on the final whorl. [3]
The aperture is angular at the upper end and tapers toward the base. The interior of the outer lip is grooved. The columella bears two thick folds positioned above the center of the shell and oriented perpendicular to the shell's axis. [2]
The shell has been described as pale yellow in dead specimens, [3] while Bavay described it as chestnut-brown (spadiceous). [2] Reported shell height ranges from 9 to 10 millimetres (0.35 to 0.39 in) with a width of 3 millimetres (0.12 in), and an aperture measuring approximately half of the total shell height (5 millimetres (0.20 in)). [3] [2]
The type specimen was recovered from Station 61 (Dredge No. XXXIV) off the eastern coast of Morocco at a depth of 112 metres (367 ft). It is also known to occur in the waters off southwestern Portugal. [2]
