Epitoniidae Berry, 1910 (1812)

Epitonium laidlawi

(Melvill & Standen, 1903)

Description:

Dimensions range from 8.8 mm - 13 mm high and 4.1 mm wide.
Width to height ratio: 0.47:1 ~ 0.32:1

Shell: attenuate, slender, fusiform; thin; small. Exterior colour white. About 12 whorls; protoconch with 2-3 whorls smooth whorls; teleoconch with 8-9 whorls ventricose, closely and beautifully finely lamellat. Spire with 8 whorls. Suture deep, impressed. Umbilicate: fenestrated. Approximately 44 costae on the body whorl. Costae hooked near the sutures above. Intercostal spaces intercostal space with 16 distinct spiral striae on centre of whorl and about 13 minute spiral striae below the suture on the penultimate whorl;. Interstices with approximately 13 - 16 spiral striae per whorl. Columella margin broadened. Aperture slightly rounded; peristome complete.

Distribution:

Gulf of Oman [Melvill & Standen, 1903a: 344] [Nakayama, 2003: 16].

Habitat:

11m [Brown & Neville, 2015: 94] to 60 m [Nakayama, 2003: 16].

Etymology:

named for Mr. Frank F. Laidlaw., With this we are very pleased to be able to connect the name of our friend, Mr. Frank F. Laidlaw, whose zoological researches in Malayana during the "Skeat" Expedition have proved of much scientific importance. [Melvill & Standen, 1903].

SpeciesImage

Melvill, J. C. & Standen, R. (1903a). Plate VII. Fig. 8.

Scala laidlawi sp.n. (PI. VII., fig. 8).

Distribution

as listed in source literature

Type Material:

The following list brings together type material and other cited specimens as reported in the sources examined, grouped under the names and designations used in each source. The same specimen may appear in multiple entries drawn from different sources. Some entries concern other species included by authors for comparison; inclusion in this list does not imply synonymy.

Epitonium laidlawi (Melvill & Standen, 1903)TypeBMNH 1903.12.15.22-23. [Kaicher, 1980: EP1-2337].
Amaea (Filiscala) laidlawi (Melvill & Standen, 1903)TypeMuscat, Persian Gulf, 10-23m. [Nakayama, 2003: 16].
Scala laidlawi Melvill & Standen, 1903SyntypeNHMUK 1903.12.15.22-23. Maskat, Persian Gulf, 11-27m [6-15 fthms]. [Brown & Neville, 2015: 94].TypeNHM 1903.12.15.22-23. Hagar as Sarqui, Oman. [Natural History Museum, 2014: NHM 1903.12.15.22-23].

Melvill, J. C. & Standen, R (1903).

Shown in text as Scala laidlawi Melvill & Standen, 1903

Species Image

Plate VII. Fig. 8.

Scala laidlawi sp.n. (PI. VII., fig. 8).

Species Image

pp: 344-345.

Synonymy:

Amaea (Filiscala) laidlawi (Melvill & Standen, 1903) [Nakayama, 2003: 16]
Epitonium (Parviscala) laidlawi (Melvill & Standen, 1903) [Weil et al., 1999: 76]
Scala laidlawi Melvill & Standen, 1903 [Brown & Neville, 2015: 94; Melvill & Standen, 1903a: 344; Natural History Museum, 2014: NHM 1903.12.15.22-23]

Source Literature:

arsint.com (2023). Shells for Sale:Epitonidae. arsint.com. http://www.arsint.com/seashells_epitoniidae_opalia.html [Accessed 21 October 2023]
Brown, L. & Neville, B.D. (2015). Catalog of the recent taxa of the families Epitoniidae and Nystiellidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda) with a bibliography of the descriptive and systematic literature. Zootaxa. 3907(1). Magnolia Press Auckland, New Zealand. http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3907.1.1 [Accessed 22 October 2023]
Kaicher, S.D. (1980). Epitoniidae I [Pack 23]. S. D. Kaicher, St. Petersburg, Florida. http://www.femorale.com/kaicher/species.asp?f=Epitoniidae&c=125 [Accessed 8 May 2023]
Melvill, J. C. & Standen, R. (1903a). The genus Scala (Klein) Humphrey, as represented in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, and North Arabian Sea, with descriptions of new species.. Journal of Conchology. 10. Conchological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/31650162 [Accessed 26 February 2025]
Nakayama, T. (2003). A Review of Northwest Pacific Epitoniids. Monographs of Marine Mollusca. 6. Backhuys Publishers
Natural History Museum (2014). NHM Collection specimens [Data set]. Natural History Museum. https://doi.org/10.5519/0002965 [Accessed 6 April 2026]
Weil, A., Brown, L. & Neville, B. (1999). The Wentletrap Book. Evolver
WoRMS Editorial Board (2025). World Register of Marine Species. https://www.marinespecies.org at VLIZ. [Accessed 8 November 2025]

WoRMS direct page link: Open WoRMS record