Nassa munda Sturany, 1900

Albano, Paolo G., Bakker, Piet A. J., Janssen, Ronald & Eschner, Anita, 2017, An illustrated catalogue of Rudolf Sturany's type specimens in the Naturhistorisches Museum Wien, Austria (NHMW): Red Sea gastropods, Zoosystematics and Evolution 93 (1), pp. 45-94 : 60

Nassa munda Sturany, 1900 Figure 13

Nassa munda Sturany, 1900a: 200; redescribed and illustrated in Sturany (1903), page 223-224, plate II, figures 4a-b.

Type locality.

Station 135, “südöstlich von Akik Seghir" [south-east of Akik Seghir, Eritrea], 17°26.1'N, 39°19'E, 332m.

Additional original localities.

Station 135 (332 m) and 145 (800 m) (Southern Red Sea; Table 1 ).

Type material.

Figured syntype: NHMW 84190 (station 135; height: 9.9 mm; figured in Sturany 1903, plate II, figures 4a-b). Further syntypes: NHMW 71640/O/746 (station 135): 4 specimens; NHMW 84191 (station 135): 14 specimens; NHMW 84192 (station 145): 1 specimen.

Additional material.

NHMW 84193 (station 170): 1 specimen.

Original description.

Gehäuse klein und festschalig, kegelig-oval; von den acht Umgängen sind die ersten gerundet und glatt, die übrigen stufig abgesetzt und mit zahlreichen Querwülsten (etwa 26 auf der Schlusswindung) ausgestattet, die von Spiralstreifen gekreuzt und gekerbt werden. Auch ist durch eine schärfer eingegrabene Spirallinie der oberste Theil jeder Windung als eine Reihe von Höckerchen abgesetzt. Auf dem Außenrande der Mündung in der Regel sechs bis acht Zähnchen, von denen einige besonders hervortreten können. Andeutung von Bänderung nur selten zu beobachten.

Höhe der Schale 7 1/2 bis 9 3/4, Breite 4 1/4 bis 5 mm; Höhe der Mündung 3 1/2 bis 4 1/2, Breite derselben 2 bis 2 3/4 mm.

Von Station 135 (332 m) und 145 (800 m) vorliegend.

Translation.

Shell small and thick, conical-oval; of the eight whorls, the first are rounded and smooth, the other scalariform with numerous axial ribs (about 26 on the last whorl) which are crossed and notched by spiral threads. The uppermost part of each whorl bears a strongly sculptured spiral cord with a series of tubercles. On the outer edge of the mouth, there are usually six to eight teeth, some of which may be particularly prominent. Traces of colour bands can rarely be observed.

Height of the shell 7.5 to 9.75, width 4.25 to 5 mm; height of the mouth 3.5 to 4.5, width 2 to 2.75 mm.

From station 135 (332 m) and 145 (800 m).

Comments.

Cernohorsky (1984: 156) listed munda as nomen dubium and possible synonym of Nassarius (Zeuxis) idyllius (Melvill & Standen, 1901).

Nassa lathraia as well as Nassa sporadica , Nassa stiphra and Nassa munda are published at the same date and are regarded synonymous. Examination of the type material as well as of rich material from various expeditions to the deep Red Sea (RJ) shows that the various names only denote sculptural variants which can be observed to occur together in part at the same stations and which cannot be told apart as different taxa. Whereas Janssen in Janssen and Taviani (2015) used lathraia as valid name, Dekker and Orlin (2000: 28) should be regarded as first revisers who selected Nassarius mundus (Sturany, 1900) as valid name for the taxon explicitly denoting the other names as synonyms. Cernohorsky (1984: 103) regarded lathraia as a possible synonym of Nassarius (Niotha) sinusigerus (A. Adams, 1852). Whether this is correct needs further study and comparison of many other conchologically similar species. If it proves correct, sinusigerus would become the valid name for this assemblage of forms denoted by Sturany with four names.

Figures

Figure 13. Nassa munda Sturany, 1900, Station 135 (Akik Seghir, Eritrea, Red Sea). A-C, E. Figured syntype, NHMW 84190: front (A), right side (B), back (C), protoconch (E). D. Original figure by Sturany (1903). F. Original label of figured syntype. Scale bars: A-C: 2 mm, E: 0.2 mm.