| Volutomitra persephone | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Shell of Volutomitra persephone (holotype at the Smithsonian Institution) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Subclass: | Caenogastropoda |
| Order: | Neogastropoda |
| Superfamily: | Turbinelloidea |
| Family: | Volutomitridae |
| Genus: | Volutomitra |
| Species: | V. persephone |
| Binomial name | |
| Volutomitra persephone Bayer, 1971 [1] | |
Volutomitra persephone is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Volutomitridae. [2]
The shell is of moderate size for the genus, reaching at least 40.7 mm in length and 16.1 mm in diameter. It is fusiform, porcellaneous white beneath a thin, smooth, olivaceous periostracum, with an elevated, flat-sided spire and a weakly produced siphonal canal that is slightly flared anteriorly. The shell consists of about ten whorls, with the suture only weakly impressed. [1]
The aperture is narrowly elliptical. The outer lip is thin, smooth, and faintly reflected at the edge. The parietal wall bears a narrow glazed area. The columella is slightly arched and bears four plications, of which the anteriormost is weakest and not externally visible; the remaining three are visible within the aperture, with the middle plication the strongest. [1]
Axial sculpture consists of narrow, semi-lunate axial ribs that appear on early whorls and become obsolete by about the fifth whorl. Spiral sculpture is absent on the spire but becomes evident on the body whorl, where approximately 15 low, flattened spiral cords develop toward the base. No operculum is present. The radula is small, with a scaphelloid rachidian tooth bearing a pointed, V-shaped central cusp. [1]
This species occurs in the tropical western Atlantic, including the Caribbean Sea off Panama and Venezuela. [1]
The species inhabits deep-water environments on the continental slope, at depths ranging from approximately 660 to 1,570 metres (2165 to 5150 feet). [1]
Golfo de los Mosquitos, Panama (9°07.4′N, 81°07.4′W), at depths of 664–681 m (2178 to 2234 ft). [1]
Small specimens collected off Venezuela, ranging from 11 to 19 mm in shell length, do not differ from larger individuals in radular or shell characters and are considered conspecific. The species closely resembles Volutomitra alaskana (Dall, 1921), but differs in having a less produced anterior canal and a weaker anterior columellar plication. [1]