Buccinanops cochlidium
A marine gastropod with turreted whorls and a white calcareous deposit.
Last updated
Naturalis Biodiversity Center · via Wikipedia: Buccinanops cochlidium · CC0
Buccinanops cochlidium, also called the gradated bullia, is a marine snail belonging to the Nassariidae family—the group known as Nassa mud snails or dog whelks. Its shell, which ranges from 30 mm to 112 mm in size, is elongated, smooth, and glossy. The shell’s reddish-yellow surface is marked by brown-red longitudinal flames, and a matching transverse band circles the base. The spire is tall and made up of eight whorls that are slightly angular at the top and only gently convex; the earliest whorls have longitudinal pleats.
The aperture is oval, whitish, and deeply notched at the base, with a thin outer lip and a smooth, yellowish columella. This species is especially striking for its turreted whorls and, most notably, for a whitish calcareous deposit that appears on the upper part of the lower whorls. Its range extends from central Brazil to Argentina.
Scientific classification
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumMollusca
- ClassGastropoda
- SubclassCaenogastropoda
- OrderNeogastropoda
- FamilyBuccinanopsidae
- GenusBuccinanops
- SpeciesBuccinanops cochlidium
Named by (Dillwyn, 1817)
Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Buccinanops cochlidium (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 532463 (CC BY 4.0)
How big is it?
Largest length in the source, 0.11 m, next to a 1.8 m person.
Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Buccinanops cochlidium
Where the buccinanops cochlidium has been recorded
Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (324 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 46 inland records left out (institution coordinates). 1 isolated far-off record not drawn.
Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain)
Quick Facts
- Size range
- 30 mm (1.18 in) to 112 mm / 4.41 in
- Shell shape
- ovate-conical
- elongated
- smooth
- shining
- Color
- reddish yellow with longitudinal flames of brown red; transverse band of same color at base
- Spire
- elongated
- composed of eight whorls
- slightly angular at upper part
- slightly convex
- Aperture
- ovate
- whitish
- strongly emarginated at base
- Outer lip
- thin
- Columella
- smooth, yellowish
Facts from the source article.
Background
The shell of Buccinanops cochlidium is ovate-conical, elongated, smooth, and shining, with a reddish yellow ground color scattered over with longitudinal flames of a brown red. A transverse band of the same color surrounds the base of the shell. The spire is elongated and composed of eight whorls that are slightly angular at their upper part and very slightly convex; the first whorls are plaited longitudinally. The aperture is ovate, whitish, and strongly emarginated at its base, while the outer lip is thin and the columella is smooth and yellowish.
This species is particularly remarkable for its turreted whorls and, above all, for an original deposit of whiter calcareous matter seen at the upper part of the lower whorls of the shell. The size of the shell varies between 30 mm and 112 mm.
The species occurs from Central Brazil to Argentina.
More in Marine Snails: Ceriths, Nassas and Conchs
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Buccinanops cochlidium (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Classification: the source article's taxobox; order, family and genus checked against WoRMS, the World Register of Marine Species (CC BY 4.0).
- Occurrence records: GBIF (CC0 / CC BY). Basemap: Natural Earth (public domain).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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