Mitromorpha fenestrata

Mitromorpha fenestrata Temporal range: middle Miocene PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Holotype from Auckland War Memorial Museum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Neogastropoda
Family:	Mitromorphidae
Genus:	Mitromorpha
Species:	†M. fenestrata
Binomial name
†Mitromorpha fenestrata (A. W. B. Powell, 1944)
Synonyms [1]
Mitrithara fenestrataA. W. B. Powell, 1944

Mitromorpha fenestrata is an extinct species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Mitromorphidae. ^[1] Fossils of the species date to the middle Miocene, and occurs in the strata of the Port Phillip Basin of Victoria, Australia.

Description

Reverse view of holotype

In the original description, Powell described the species as follows:

Shell small, very similar to daphnelloides , but with a reversal of the sculptural plan, the spirals being subsidiary to strongly developed axials. Biconic, height of aperture half that of shell. Spiral sculpture of sharply raised narrow cords, 4 on spire-whorls and 20 on body-whorl, the last 8 closely spaced on the anterior end, elsewhere with interspaces from 2 to 4 times width of cords. On the spire the first cord submargins the suture, after which there is a broad, free space on the shoulder or sinus area. Axials strong, narrowly rounded, 15 per whorl. Aperture with two distinct plaits and six short lirations within the outer lip. ^[2]

The holotype of the species measures 6 mm (0.24 in) in height and 2.5 mm (0.098 in) in diameter. ^[2]

Taxonomy

The species was first described by A.W.B. Powell in 1944, using the name Mitrithara fenestrata. ^[2] Thomas A. Darragh recombined the species, moving it to the genus Mitromorpha in 2024. ^[3] The holotype was collected from Fossil Beach, Balcombe Bay, Victoria, at an unknown date prior to 1944, and is held by the Auckland War Memorial Museum. ^{[4] [5]}

Distribution

This extinct marine species dates to the middle Miocene, and occurs in the strata of the Port Phillip Basin of Victoria, Australia, from the Gellibrand Formation. ^{[4] [3]}

References

1. Mitromorpha fenestrata (A. W. B. Powell, 1944) † . 24 November 2025. Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species .
2. Powell, A. W. B. (1944). "The Australian Tertiary Mollusca of the Family Turridae". Records of the Auckland Institute and Museum . 3: 3–68. ISSN   0067-0464. JSTOR   42905993. Wikidata   Q58676624.
3. Darragh, Thomas A. (August 2024). "A checklist of Australian marine Cenozoic Mollusca". Memoirs of Museum Victoria . 83: 37–206. doi:10.24199/J.MMV.2024.83.02. ISSN   1447-2546. Wikidata   Q136396722.
4. Blom, Wilma M. (2025). "Annotated Catalogue of Fossil and Extant Molluscan Types in the Auckland War Memorial Museum". Bulletin of the Auckland Museum . 22. doi:10.32912/BULLETIN/22. ISSN   1176-3213. OCLC   1550165130. Wikidata   Q135397912.
5. "Mitromorpha fenestrata". Collections Online. Auckland War Memorial Museum . Retrieved 24 November 2025.