Arene briarea

Arene briarea
Shell of Arene briarea (specimen at Naturalis Biodiversity Center)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Vetigastropoda
Order:	Trochida
Superfamily:	Trochoidea
Family:	Areneidae
Genus:	Arene
Species:	A. briarea
Binomial name
Arene briarea (Dall, 1881)
Synonyms
Liotia (Arene) briareus(Dall, 1881) superseded combination Liotia (Arene) briareus var. aspinaDall, 1889 junior subjective synonym Liotia (Arene) briareus var. perforataDall, 1889 junior subjective synonym Turbo (Liotia) briareus Dall, 1881 superseded combination Turbo briareusDall, 1881 superseded combination

Arene briarea is a species of sea snail, and is a known member of the group turban snails. It is a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Areneidae and order Trochida. ^[1]

Description

The size of the shell varies between 4 mm and 9 mm. The species has a purple-orangish tint.

(Original description) The small shell is elevated, comprising five rounded whorls culminating in an obtuse apex. The shell substance is thick and solid, exhibiting a pearly interior.

The protoconch is flattened, lemon-yellow, and has an appearance similar to a small Angaria Röding, 1798. The subsequent shell may be whitish with the backs of the spines streaked with rose-color, or the entire shell (excluding the protoconch) may be of a darker shade of rose.

The protoconch has transverse ridges. The following 1½ whorls are covered with spiny rugosities that are spirally arranged. The remaining whorls feature a complex sculpture of revolving ridges and spines. Superior whorls (above the periphery) bear four to five close-set revolving ridges armed with hollow spines up to a millimeter long (or less). These spines resemble little curved tubes, slit down on the anterior side, but can sometimes appear dwarfed, thickened, and stunted. A thread bearing smaller spines runs just below the periphery (or appears at the suture in earlier whorls). Internal to this thread are three strong, closely nodulated ribs.

The umbilical area is defined by a very pronounced, coarsely nodulated umbilical rib. Internal to this rib are three rows of small spines that twist into the umbilicus.

The entire shell surface is furthermore covered with growth lines that rise into elegantly imbricated (overlapping) scales. These scales are regular on the base but irregular on the superior surface, where their irregularity creates a shagreened (granular) effect.

The aperture is circular and becomes thickened in the adult. The umbilicus's walls are smooth above the rows of spines, but the twisting of the whorl results in the proper perforation being very small. ^[2]

Distribution

The species lives in the tropical to polar areas of the northern hemisphere. The species occurs in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico; in the Atlantic Ocean off Northern Brazil. ^[3]

References

1. Arene briareus (Dall, 1881) . Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species  on 19 April 2010.
2. Dall, W.H. (1881). "Reports on the results of dredging, under the supervision of Alexander Agassiz, in the Gulf of Mexico and in the Caribbean Sea (1877-78), by the United States Coast Survey Steamer "Blake", Lieutenant-Commander C.D. Sigsbee, U.S.N., and Commander J.R. Bartlett, U.S.N., commanding. XV. Preliminary report on the Mollusca". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. 9 (2): 52–53. Retrieved 15 October 2025. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
3. "Arene briareus, Briar cyclostreme". 2 December 2023 [July 4, 2009].

• Rosenberg, G., F. Moretzsohn, and E. F. García. 2009. Gastropoda (Mollusca) of the Gulf of Mexico, pp. 579–699 in Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico–Origins, Waters, and Biota. Biodiversity. Texas A&M Press, College Station, Texas
• Jensen, R. H. (1997). A Checklist and Bibliography of the Marine Molluscs of Bermuda. Unp. , 547 pp
• Turgeon, D., Quinn, J. F., Bogan, A. E., Coan, E. V., Hochberg, F. G., Lyons, W. G., Mikkelsen, P. M., Neves, R. J., Roper, C. F. E., Rosenberg, G., Roth, B., Scheltema, A., Thompson, F. G., Vecchione, M., Williams, J. D. (1998). Common and scientific names of aquatic invertebrates from the United States and Canada: mollusks. 2nd ed. American Fisheries Society Special Publication, 26. American Fisheries Society: Bethesda, MD (USA). ISBN 1-888569-01-8. IX, 526 + cd-rom pp.

External links

• Dall, W.H. (1889). "Reports on the results of dredging, under the supervision of Alexander Agassiz, in the Gulf of Mexico (1877-78) and in the Caribbean Sea (1879-80), by the U.S. Coast Survey Steamer "Blake", Lieut.-Commander C.D. Sigsbee, U.S.N., and Commander J.R. Bartlett, U.S.N., commanding. XXIX. Report on the Mollusca. Part 2, Gastropoda and Scaphopoda". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoölogy at Harvard College. 18: 388–389. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
• "Arene briareus". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 15 January 2019.