Splendrillia adelaidae

Splendrillia adelaidae 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:	Drilliidae
Genus:	Splendrillia
Species:	†S. adelaidae
Binomial name
†Splendrillia adelaidae A. W. B. Powell, 1944

Splendrillia adelaidae is an extinct species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Drilliidae. ^[1] Fossils of the species date to the middle Miocene, and occur in the strata of the St Vincent Basin of South Australia.

Description

Reverse view of holotype

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

Shell moderately large, proportionately broad, strongly axially and spirally sculptured as in the Recent harpularia . Axials vertical, broadly rounded, 12 per whorl, tops sharply planed off at peripheral angle, but extended weakly over base. Surface covered with deeply incised spirals, six on spire-whorls and about 26 on body-whorl, base and neck. Subsutural fold strong, flattened. Shoulder deeply concave. Parietal callus pad heavy; sinus broadly rounded, moderately deep. ^[2]

The holotype of the species measures 11.3 mm (0.44 in) in height and 4.15 mm (0.163 in) in diameter. ^[2]

Taxonomy

The species was first described by A.W.B. Powell in 1944. ^[2] The holotype was collected by W. Howchin and J.C. Verco in 1919, from the Metropolitan Abattoirs Bore in Adelaide, at a depth of between 122–152 m (400–499 ft). The holotype is held by the Auckland War Memorial Museum. ^{[3] [4]}

Distribution

This extinct marine species dates to the middle Miocene, and occurs in the strata of the St Vincent Basin of South Australia, known from the Dry Creek Sands. ^{[3] [5]}

References

1. Splendrillia adelaidae 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. 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.
4. "Splendrillia adelaidae". Collections Online. Auckland War Memorial Museum . Retrieved 24 November 2025.
5. 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.