Conus (Lautoconus) lauriatragei, Psarras & Merle & Koskeridou, 2022

Psarras, Christos, Merle, Didier & Koskeridou, Efterpi, 2022, Late Miocene Conidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda) of Crete (Greece). Part 2, European Journal of Taxonomy 816, pp. 1-70 : 24-26

Conus (Lautoconus) lauriatragei sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:E76A5E2C-EFE3-49F8-9999-625B71E8F562

Figs 13–14 , 20 , 40G ; Table 7

Conus (Lautoconus) sp. – Kovács & Vicián 2013: 73, fig. 73.

Etymology

Name taken after Agnès Lauriat-Rage who was responsible of the Action spécifique du Muséum project (1989–1990).

Material examined

Holotype GREECE – Crete • Tylissos Est [Locality East of Tylissos village]; Heraklion Basin; 1990; Action spécifique du Muséum project (1989–1990) exped.; MNHN.F.A83014.

Other material

HUNGARY – Letkes • Pannonian Basin ; HNHM INV 2013.291 .

Shell description

Large-sized shell (SL max.: l 83.84 mm), with hemispherical-shaped spire and smooth shoulder. Early spire whorls convex, smooth, resulting in flat to convex outline. Later spire whorls strongly convex, elevated. Suture channelled, irregular. Subsutural flexure very deep, moderately curved, strongly asymmetrical ( Fig. 40G ). Shoulder smooth, with maximum diameter at shoulder. Aperture narrow, curved. Last whorl conical, straight to concave, narrowing slightly at centre of last whorl. Deeply carved growth lines on last whorl. Aperture not straight, wavy. Fasciole very small, to indistinct.

Description of colour pattern

Shell surface partly damaged ( Fig. 13 ). The visible colour pattern consists of wide, axial flammulae on the spire whorls, that continue axially as ribbons on the body of the shell. The ribbons are connected with irregular fluorescent blotches ( Fig. 14 ).

Remarks

This species is quite unusual in morphology ( Table 7), being very large with a semi-circular spire outline species of Conus (Lautoconus) with a similar morphology occur today, such as Conus (Lautoconus) regonae Rolán & Trovão in Rolán, 1990 (see Tenorio et al. 2020: fig. 6d). Therefore, we are confident in assigning it to this subgenus. Other than the Cretan specimen, another specimen called Conus (Lautoconus) sp. (HNHM INV 2013.291; Kovács & Vicián 2013) has also been found in the Paratethys from the Pannonian Basin at Letkés, Hungary, and for us it could belong to the same species. Its colour pattern is not comparable to any of the Conidae studied herein. Despite not having at least three shells of this species found so far ( Hendricks 2015), due to the unique morphology of this species we name it Conus (Lautoconus) lauriatragei sp. nov.

Stratigraphic range

Langhian of Hungary (Pannonian Basin, Kovács & Vicián 2013) and Tortonian of Greece (Heraklion Basin, Crete).

Figures

Fig. 13. Conus (Lautoconus) lauriatragei sp. nov,, specimen MNHN.F.A83014 from the late Miocene of Tylissos, Crete (Greece) in apertural, abapertural and apical views, under natural (A2, A4) and UV light. Scale bar = 1 cm.

Fig. 14. Colour pattern of irregular blotches and axial ribbons on Conus (Lautoconus) lauriatragei sp. nov. MNHN.F.A83014 from the late Miocene of Tylissos, Crete (Greece). Scale bar = 1 cm.

Fig. 20. PCA graph with nine species of Conus (Lautoconus) found in late Miocene localities of Crete (Greece). Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 1 is broken and cannot be included in the graph. Yellow dots = Conus (Lautoconus) eschewegi (Pereira da Costa, 1866); grey dots = Conus (Lautoconus) ictini sp. nov.; red dots = Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 2; blue dot = Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 3; black dot = Conus (Lautoconus) lauriatragei sp. nov.; brown dots = Conus (Lautoconus) damianakisi sp. nov.; purple dot = Conus (Lautoconus) cf. baldichieri Borson, 1820; green dots = Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 4; light blue dot = Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 5. Abbreviations: LW = length width ratio; PMD = position of maximum diameter; RD = relative diameter; RSH = relative height of spire.

Fig. 40. Examples of subsutural flexures. A. Conus (Lautoconus) eschewegi Pereira da Costa, 1866 (MNHN.F.A82976). B. Conus (Lautoconus) ictini sp. nov. (AMPG(IV) 3719). C. Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 1 (MNHN.F.A82982). D. Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 2 (AMPG(IV) 3756). E. Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 3 (MNHN.F.A83012). F. Conus (Lautoconus) cf. baldichieri Borson, 1820 (MNHN.F.A83013). G. Conus (Lautoconus) lauriatragei sp. nov. (MNHN.F.A83014). H. Conus (Lautoconus) damianakisi sp. nov. (AMPG(IV) 3802). I. Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 4 (MNHN.F.A83015). J. Conus (Lautoconus) sp. 5 (AMPG(IV) 3861). K. Conus (Stephanoconus) cf. taurinensis Bellardi & Michelotti, 1841 (AMPG(IV) 3808). L. Conus (Stephanoconus) moissettei sp. nov. (MNHN.F.A83071). M. Conus davolii sp. nov. (MNHN.F.A83091). N. Conus fuscocingulatus Hörnes, 1851 (AMPG(IV) 3858). O. Conus (Plagioconus) elatus Michelotti, 1847 (AMPG(IV) 3862). P. Conus (Plagioconus) sp. (AMPG(IV) 3890). Q. Conus (Plagioconus) sp. (AMPG(IV) 3898). R. Conus (Plagioconus) aquensis d’Orbigny, 1852 (AMPG(IV) 3907). Not to scale.