Callumbonella suturalis
A marine gastropod mollusk in the family Trochidae.
Callumbonella suturalis is a marine gastropod mollusk belonging to the Trochidae family, commonly known as top snails. Its shell, which ranges from 13 to 32 mm, is depressed-conical and oblique, with an open umbilicus. The shell is cream-colored with a blush-rose tint. It has seven flat whorls that are very smooth in the middle, bordered above and below by rings of small tubercles; the upper nodules are large and sharp. The sculpture varies in its beaded rows of striae. The body whorl is angled, with a convex underside that is concentrically ringed. Its margin is densely marked by transverse striae and oblique grooves, giving it an elegant, granulated-nodose texture. About sixteen uneven basal ridges are present. The aperture is angled. In young specimens, the umbilicus is deep and enclosed by a sharp ridge.
Originally described as a fossil from the Pliocene of Sicily and Calabria, Italy, the species was later found alive in the Bay of Biscay. Its distribution includes the Atlantic Ocean near the Cape Verde Islands, the Canary Islands, Namibia, and Morocco, as well as the Mediterranean Sea off Algeria.
Quick Facts
- Taxon
- Callumbonella suturalis
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The shell of Callumbonella suturalis varies in size between 13 mm and 32 mm. It has a depressed-conical shape and is cream-colored with a tint of blush rose. The seven whorls are planate and very smooth in the middle, coronated above and below with series of small tubercles; the superior nodules are large and acute. The sculpture is variable as regards the beaded rows of striae. The body whorl is angulated, with a convex inferior face that is concentrically cingulate, and its margin is very densely transversely striate with oblique sulci, elegantly granulate-nodose. The about 16 basal cinguli are unequal. The aperture is angulated. Young specimens have a deep umbilicus enclosed within a sharp ridge.
Originally discovered as a fossil from the Pliocene in Sicily and Calabria, Italy, the species was later found alive in the Bay of Biscay. Its distribution includes the Atlantic Ocean off the Cape Verde Islands, the Canary Islands, Namibia, and Morocco, as well as the Mediterranean Sea off Algeria.
Reader's Guide
Callumbonella suturalis is notable for its transition from a fossil discovery to a living species, first identified from Pliocene deposits in Sicily and Calabria, Italy, and subsequently found alive in the Bay of Biscay. This species, a member of the family Trochidae, exhibits a distinctive shell with a depressed-conical shape, cream coloration with a blush rose tint, and seven planate whorls coronated with tubercles. The sculpture is variable, featuring beaded rows of striae, and the body whorl is angulated with a granulate-nodose margin. Young specimens possess a deep umbilicus enclosed by a sharp ridge. Its geographic range extends across the Atlantic Ocean off the Cape Verde Islands, the Canary Islands, Namibia, and Morocco, as well as the Mediterranean Sea off Algeria, indicating a broad distribution in both fossil and modern contexts. The species' variable shell sculpture and its occurrence in both fossil and living states contribute to its significance in understanding the biogeography and evolutionary history of trochid gastropods.
Did You Know?
- The shell size of Callumbonella suturalis varies between 13 mm and 32 mm.
- The species has about 16 basal cinguli that are unequal.
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