Cerithiopsis beneitoi Rolán, Espinosa & Fernández-Garcés, 2007

Pimenta, Alexandre Dias, Faria, Raquel Garofalo De Souza, Figueira, Raquel Medeiros Andrade & Fernandes, Maurício Romulo, 2024, Unraveling another of the ‘ Big Fiveʹ: new species and records of Cerithiopsidae from Brazil (Caenogastropoda: Triphoroidea), Zootaxa 5494 (1), pp. 1-71 : 30

Cerithiopsis beneitoi Rolán, Espinosa & Fernández-Garcés, 2007

( Fig. 14A–E)

Cerithiopsis beneitoi Rolán, Espinosa & Fernández-Garcés, 2007: 6 , Fig. 13–16, 61–62.

Cerithiopsis beneitoi : Rolán et al. (2013: 9, fig. 5); Rosenberg et al. (2009: 644 [not figured]; Zhang (2011: 105, fig. 319); Redfern (2013: 139, fig. 400); Cecalupo & Perugia (2020: 37, pl. 19 Fig. 1a–d).

Nanopsis beneitoi : Cecalupo & Robba (2010: 53, mentioned on a list of species for new generic allocation).

Costulopsis beneitoi : Cecalupo & Robba (2019: 66, mentioned on a list of species for new generic allocation).

Type material. Holotype: MNCN 15.05 /47008.

Type locality. Cuba, Rancho Luna, Cienfuegos Bay , 45 m.

Material examined. The holotype and: Brazil: -- off Rio de Janeiro state: HAB 13 sta. H1: MNRJ 16572 [1*p]; HAB 13 sta. H2: MNRJ 16571 [1*p]; RAP IG sta. 34, exUERJ 5256 [1] .

Remarks. Cerithiopsis beneitoi can be distinguished from other similar Caribbean species by its small (up to 2.9 mm long) and mainly white shell, with faintly darker bands on the adapical and subperipheral cords, and in having equally spaced spiral cords on the teleoconch (Rolán et al. 2007). All these features are observed in shells from Brazil despite they reach a maximum length of 2.0 mm ( Fig. 14A–C). The material from the Caribbean shows a thin spiral cord on the second and third whorls of the protoconch (Rolán et al., 2007, 2013), which could not be observed in the illustrated shell from Brazil due to the eroded condition of the protoconch ( Fig. 14D–E), although the minute riblets in the suture can be seen ( Fig. 14F).

A very similar species was described from Guadeloupe and Martinique: Cerithiopsis michellegalli Cecalupo & Perugia, 2020 , with similar size, colour and protoconch. Cecalupo & Perugia (2020) did not provide a comparison to C. beneitoi , and both species seem to be mainly distinguished by the darker brown bands and apparently a more developed adapical spiral cord in C. michellegalli , especially if compared to Caribbean shells of C. beneitoi (Rolán et al. 2007) .

Geographic and bathymetric distribution. Disjunct distribution, in the Tropical Northwestern Atlantic Province (Bahamian, Southwestern Caribbean, Greater Antilles, Eastern Caribbean ecoregion), and in the boundary of the Tropical Southwestern Atlantic Province and the Warm Temperate Southwestern Atlantic Province (Rio de Janeiro state). From 4 m (Rolán et al. 2007) to 59 m ( Cecalupo & Perugia 2020).