Epitonium

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Epitonium
Epitonium scalare shell.jpg
The sculpture of the shell of Epitonium scalare has raised ribs that are known as costae. Costae are an almost universal feature in shells of Epitonium species.
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Superfamily: Epitonioidea
Family: Epitoniidae
Genus: Epitonium
Linnaeus, 1758
Type species
Turbo scalarisLinnaeus, 1758
Synonyms

See text

Epitonium is a genus of small predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks. Epitonium is the type genus of the family Epitoniidae, the wentletraps. [1]

Contents

The common name wentletraps is derived from the Dutch word wenteltrap, denoting a spiral staircase. This refers to the striking form and sculpture of the shells of the mollusks in this genus, and to a lesser extent, the whole family.

The genus Epitonium has been divided in the past by some authors into several subgenera, but these subgenera were based only on shell characters and did not reflect the true underlying relationships or phylogeny.

Shell description

Epitonium shells are high-spired, and are all-white in most of the species within this genus. A few species are tinted with brown to varying degrees, or have a brown stripe on the shoulder of the whorl. The shells typically have blade-like vertical ribs, known as costae.

Habitat

Wentletraps usually live in sand near sea anemones or corals.

Life habits

These snails are predators and feed by inserting their proboscis and biting out small pieces of the anemone's tissues. Some species of wentletrap feed on only one species of sea anemone, in other words they are species-specific in terms of their prey.

Synonymised genera

Many species that now are placed in the genus Epitonium have, over the years, been classified in other genera. These have become synonyms of Epitonium : [1]

Species

Epitonium hexagonum Epitonium hexagonum 001.jpg
Epitonium hexagonum
Epitonium irregulare Epitonium irregulare 002.jpg
Epitonium irregulare

Species within the genus Epitonium include:

Note: Some malacologists have recently placed many of the more than 600 named species into other genera, which were previously considered to be subgenera of the genus Epitonium. On the other hand, many species that belonged to subgenera of Epitonium are now included in Epitonium. These subgenera were based on details of the shell sculpture and not on molecular analysis.

Subgenera and species brought into synonymy

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S. (2010). Epitonium Röding, 1798. In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=137943 on 2010-11-22
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