Coralliophila pulchella (A. Adams, 1854)

Oliverio, Marco, 2009, Diversity of Coralliophilinae (Mollusca, Neogastropoda, Muricidae) at Austral Islands (South Pacific), Zoosystema 31 (4), pp. 759-789 : 770-772

Coralliophila pulchella (A. Adams, 1854)

( Fig. 5C, D )

Rapana (Rhizochilus) pulchella A. Adams, 1854: 98 .

TYPE MATERIAL. — Syntypes ( BMNH 1984112, three figured by Kosuge & Suzuki [1985: pl 40, figs 4, 5] and Higo et al. [2001: 66, G2402]).

TYPE LOCALITY. — Philippines.

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — The type material and: Rimatara Is., BENTHAUS, stn DW 2020, 22°37’S, 152°49.1’W, 920-930 m, 1 dd ( Fig. 5C, D ).

DISTRIBUTION. — Indian Ocean, from Natal, South Africa ( Kosuge & Meyer 1999) and Somalia (Oliverio unpublished). Pacific Ocean, from Kii Peninsula, Japan, southward to the Philippines ( Higo et al. 1999), “rocky bottoms or coral reefs 20-50 m ” ( Tsuchiya 2000). New Caledonia area, alive in 140-152 m (empty shells in 12-433 m: Oliverio 2008b). Austral Islands, one empty shell in 920- 930 m.

REMARKS

Coralliophila pulchella is very similar to Coralliophila carolae D’Attilio & Myers, 1984 , which has been established basing only on subtle features, i.e. a coloured shell and a finer sculpture than C. pulchella . The protoconch is multispiral (2.5+ whorls) with two spiral keels, subsutural prosocline threads and oblong tubercules over each keel. The single shell here recorded is quite probably a fossil, drifted downshore from shallower habitat.

Figures

FIG. 5. — A, B, Coralliophila mitraeforma Kosuge, 1985, Banc Lotus, BENTHAUS, stn DW 1948, 23°48.7’S, 147°53.5’W, 120-280 m; C, D, C.pulchella (A.Adams,1854),Rimatara Is., BENTHAUS,stn DW 2020,22°37’S,152°49.1’W,920-930 m;E, C. suduirauti Smriglio & Mariottini, 2003, Banc Lotus, BENTHAUS, stn DW 1946, 23°49.2’S, 147°41.2’W, 100-200 m; F-H, Coralliophila sp. A, Banc Arago, BENTHAUS, stn DW 1970, 23°22’S, 150°43.2’W, 350-401 m. Scale bars: A-D, 10 mm; E-H, 5 mm.