Africonus miruchae ( Röckel, Rolán & Monteiro, 1980 )

Tenorio, Manuel J., Abalde, Samuel, Pardos-Blas, José R. & Zardoya, Rafael, 2020, Taxonomic revision of West African cone snails (Gastropoda: Conidae) based upon mitogenomic studies: implications for conservation, European Journal of Taxonomy 663 (663), pp. 1-89 : 38-39

Africonus miruchae ( Röckel, Rolán & Monteiro, 1980)

Fig. 4P

Conus miruchae Röckel et al., 1980a: 89 , figs 62–65.

Conus miruchae – Monteiro et al. 2004: 60, pl. 126, figs 1–5.

Conus longilineus (not C. grahami longilineus Röckel, Rolán & Monteiro, 1980 ) – Monteiro et al. 2004: pl. 125.

Material examined

Holotype

CABO VERDE • 11.9 mm; Sal Island, Baiona ; NMSF.

Other material

CABO VERDE • 1 spec.; Sal Island, Terrinha Fina , Palhona ; 16º49ʹ12ʺ N, 22º59ʹ12ʺ W; 7 Apr. 2014; MNCN exped.; GenBank mitochondrion, partial genome: KY864971 ; MNCN 15.05/79784 • 1 spec.; 12.9 mm; same collection data as for preceding; MNCN 15.05/79789 ( Fig. 4P ) • 1 spec.; Sal Island, Rabo de Junco ; 16º41ʹ44ʺ N, 22º58ʹ35ʺ W; 5 Apr. 2014; MNCN exped.; GenBank mitochondrion, partial genome: MF491574 ; MNCN 15.05/79756 .

Geographical distribution

North of Sal Island, Cabo Verde Archipelago. Also present in Rabo de Junco, on the west coast of Sal Island.

Conservation status in IUCN Red List

Least concern.

Remarks

According to the phylogeny, A. miruchae is sister to all the other endemic species from Sal Island. This small-sized species is adapted to the rough sea conditions present in the barren northern coasts of Sal Island. It is often found crawling on the rocky walls of large pools formed during low tide. A population of this species that is present at Rabo de Junco, at the north end of Murdeira Bay, is often confused with A. longilineus due to similarities in shell morphology ( Monteiro et al. 2004).

Figures

Fig. 4 (opposite page). A. Conus felitae Rolán, 1990, holotype, 12.7 mm (MNCN 15.05/1099). B. Africonus fernandesi (Tenorio, Afonso & Rolán, 2008), 14.5 mm (MNCN 15.05/78598). C. Africonus freitasi Tenorio, Afonso, Rolán, Pires, Vasconcelos, Abalde & Zardoya, 2018, holotype, 13.7 mm (MNCN 15.05/200008) D. Conus verdensis furnaeRolán, 1990,holotype, 21.1 mm (MNCN 15.05/1097). E. Africonus fuscoflavus (Röckel, Rolán & Monteiro, 1980), 22.3 mm (MNCN 15.05/80407). F. Conus damottai galeao Rolán, 1990, holotype, 21.3 mm (MNCN 15.05/1093). G. Africonus gonsaloi Afonso & Tenorio, 2014, holotype, 19.3 mm (MNCN 15.05/60119).H. Africonus grahami (Röckel, Cosel & Burnay, 1980), 24.0 mm (MNCN 15.05/78549). I. Conus infinitus Rolán, 1990, holotype, 20.8 mm (MNCN, 15.05/1095). J. Conus isabelarum Tenorio & Afonso, 2004, holotype, 22.8 mm (MNCN 15.05/46654). K. Conus josephinae Rolán, 1980, holotype, 25.8 mm (MNCN 15.05/1050). L. Africonus kersteni (Tenorio, Afonso & Rolán, 2008), holotype, 20.8 mm (MNCN 15.05/47051). M. Africonus longilineus (Röckel, Rolán & Monteiro, 1980), 21.7 mm (MNCN 15.05/79738). N. Africonus lugubris (Reeve, 1849), 14.5 mm (MNCN 15.05/90431). O. Africonus maioensis (Trovão, Rolán & Félix-Alves, 1990), 29.5 mm (MNCN 15.05/78689). P. Africonus miruchae (Röckel, Rolán & Monteiro, 1980), 12.9 mm (MNCN 15.05/79789). Scale bars = 10 mm.