Pseudoscilla babylonia
Encyclopedia
Pseudoscilla babylonia is a species
of [ of sea snail
s, marine
gastropod mollusks in the family
Pyramidellidae
, the pyrams and their allies.
are very small. The ten post-nuclear whorls are flattened, separated by a scarcely impressed suture. On the last three turns the whorls are marked at the periphery by an exceedingly strong, acute, spiral keel, which is slightly bent downward. The base of the body whorl
is short and well rounded. The entire surface of spire
and the base are smooth, except for exceedingly fine, incremental lines. The aperture
is oval. The posterior angle is acute. The outer lip
rendered by the spiral keel in the shape of an accolade. The inner lip is slender, evenly curved, very slightly revolute. The parietal is well glazed with a thin callus.
, the Gulf of Mexico
and the Lesser Antilles
.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of [ of sea snail
Sea snail
Sea snail is a common name for those snails that normally live in saltwater, marine gastropod molluscs....
s, marine
Marine (ocean)
Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
gastropod mollusks in the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Pyramidellidae
Pyramidellidae
Pyramidellidae, common name the pyram family, or pyramid shells, is a voluminous taxonomic family of mostly small and minute ectoparasitic sea snails, marine heterobranch gastropod molluscs or micromolluscs....
, the pyrams and their allies.
Description
The elongate-conic shell has a light yellowish-brown color, excepting the umbilical area, the extreme basal portion and the tip, which are white. The shell measures 3 mm. The nuclear whorlsWhorl (mollusc)
A whorl is a single, complete 360° revolution or turn in the spiral growth of a mollusc shell. A spiral configuration of the shell is found in of numerous gastropods, but it is also found in shelled cephalopods including Nautilus, Spirula and the large extinct subclass of cephalopods known as the...
are very small. The ten post-nuclear whorls are flattened, separated by a scarcely impressed suture. On the last three turns the whorls are marked at the periphery by an exceedingly strong, acute, spiral keel, which is slightly bent downward. The base of the body whorl
Body whorl
Body whorl is part of the morphology of a coiled gastropod mollusk.- In gastropods :In gastropods, the body whorl, or last whorl, is the most recently-formed and largest whorl of a spiral or helical shell, terminating in the aperture...
is short and well rounded. The entire surface of spire
Spire (mollusc)
A spire is a descriptive term for part of the coiled shell of mollusks. The word is a convenient aid in describing shells, but it does not refer to a very precise part of shell anatomy: the spire consists of all of the whorls except for the body whorl...
and the base are smooth, except for exceedingly fine, incremental lines. The aperture
Aperture (mollusc)
The aperture is an opening in certain kinds of mollusc shells: it is the main opening of the shell, where part of the body of the animal emerges for locomotion, feeding, etc....
is oval. The posterior angle is acute. The outer lip
Lip (gastropod)
In the shell of a gastropod mollusk , the margin of the aperture is called the lip or the peristome. In other words, this is a term used to describe part of gastropod shell anatomy....
rendered by the spiral keel in the shape of an accolade. The inner lip is slender, evenly curved, very slightly revolute. The parietal is well glazed with a thin callus.
Distribution
The type specimen was found in the Pacific Ocean off San Hipolito Point, Lower California. It also occurs in the Caribbean SeaCaribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
, the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
and the Lesser Antilles
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles are a long, partly volcanic island arc in the Western Hemisphere. Most of its islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, with the remainder located in the southern Caribbean just north of South America...
.