Clanculus jussieui
A marine gastropod mollusk in the family Trochidae.
Clanculus jussieui is a marine gastropod mollusk belonging to the family Trochidae, commonly known as top snails. This sea snail was named after M. Adrien-Henri de Jussieu, a professor at the Jardin du Roi.
The shell reaches 11 mm in height and 14 mm in diameter. It has an umbilicate, depressed-globose conical shape, with a polished, shiny surface. Coloration is blackish, olive, or purplish brown, either uniform or dotted or tessellated with white, often with short white flame-like marks below the sutures and always showing some white around the umbilicus. The conical spire has simple, impressed sutures. The five to six whorls are convex, with the upper surface marked by faint, often nearly invisible lines; the spaces between these lines are finely spirally striated. The shell’s base is smoother, with light concentric markings around the center. The rounded aperture has crenulated outer and basal margins inside. The columella has a small tooth at both top and bottom, is concave between them, and extends deeply into the umbilicus, resting on its edge. The umbilicus is fairly deep, smooth inside, and bordered by an irregularly crenulated rib.
This species is found in the Mediterranean Sea and in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Portugal.
Quick Facts
- Taxon
- Clanculus jussieui
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The shell of Clanculus jussieui is umbilicate, depressed-globose conic in shape, polished and shining. Its coloration is blackish, olive or purplish brown, and may be unicolored, dotted or tessellated with white, often with short white flames beneath the sutures and always more or less marked with white around the umbilicus. The spire is conical, with simple and impressed sutures. The 5 to 6 whorls are convex, with the upper surface marked with obsolete, frequently almost imperceptible lines, the interstices between them finely spirally striate. The base of the shell is smoother and lightly concentrically marked around the center. The aperture is rounded, with outer and basal margins crenulated within. The columella bears a small tooth above and below, concave between them, deeply entering the umbilicus but inserted on its edge. The umbilicus is rather deep, smooth within and bordered by an irregularly crenulated rib.
Reader's Guide
Clanculus jussieui is notable as a species of sea snail in the family Trochidae, named after the French botanist M. Adrien-Henri de Jussieu. Its shell characteristics, including the polished, shining surface and variable coloration with white markings, are described in detail. The species occurs in the Mediterranean Sea and in the Atlantic Ocean off Portugal, as documented in several 19th- and early 20th-century works by Payraudeau, Risso, Cantraine, Philippi, Monterosato, and Pallary. The entry in the European register of marine species (2001) further confirms its distribution. The shell's dimensions—height 11 mm and diameter 14 mm—and its distinctive columella and umbilicus features are key identifying traits. The species has been referenced in malacological literature and online resources such as Gastropods.com.
Did You Know?
- The species was named in honor of M. Adrien-Henri de Jussieu, 'professeur au Jardin du Roi.'
- The shell height attains 11 mm, its diameter 14 mm.
- The shell is umbilicate and has a depressed-globose conic shape.
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