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Epitoniidae Berry, 1910 (1812)

Epitonium philippinarum

(G. B. Sowerby II, 1844)

Description:

Dimensions range from 10.01 mm - 25 mm high and 2.5 mm - 12.43 mm wide.
Width to height ratio: 0.25:1 ~ 0.5:1

Shell: pyramidal, elongated, pointed, smooth; small to moderately small. Exterior colour shiny white to rich brown or purplish brown, costae white. About 10 whorls, numerous, rounded, disconnected, joined only by costae. Spire twice the height of the aperture. Suture deep to very deep, Weil et al. [1999: 98] describe them as open. Umbilicate: closed or represented by a minute chink. Approximately 8 - 10 costae on the body whorl. Costae are strong, narrow, thread like on early whorls. Costae joined at the suture; usually slightly elevated at the suture; slightly recurved with rolled edges. Base crossed by the costae, continued over base. Aperture ovate; peristome complete.

This species is very close to E. pyramidale, but E. philippinarum is rather slender in shape, and its height/breadth ratio is about 3.0, while that of E. pyramidale is about 2.0, and axial costae are not hooked at the shoulder.


Distribution:

Pacific coast of Japan, Philippines [Nakayama, 2003: 54]; Gulf of Thailand [Wells et al., 2021:128]; Australia as faar south to Sydney [Wilson, 1993: 278]. Also, a single is record from Hardwicke Bay, South Australia [Cotton & Godfrey, 1931, p7].


Habitat:

intertidal to offshore; 10-50 m, sand. [Higo et al., 1999: 180].


Etymology:

[latin] from Philippinae = the Philippines, the suffix - arum is the genitive plural meaning of, in reference to the original specimen coming from the Philippines.


Type Material:

Type: BMHN type collection 198147B for Epitonium philippinarum (G. B. Sowerby II, 1844). [Kaicher, S.D., 1980]
Syntypes: BMNH type collection 198147A for Epitonium philippinarum (G. B. Sowerby II, 1844). [Kaicher, S.D., 1981]
Type locality.- Catanauan, pr. Tayabas, Luzon Island, Philippines and Amboyna [as Epitonium (Hyaloscala) philippinarum (Sowerby, 1844)]. [Nakayama, T., 2003]
Syntypes: NHMUK 1981047 for Epitonium philippinarum (G. B. Sowerby II, 1844) - Type Locality: Catanuan, Luzon, Philippines, and Ambon Island.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]


SpeciesImage

Murrell, T. (2025).

Minnie Waters, New South Wales, Australia.
Initertidal, sand and rock.
17.4 x 7.9mm

Distribution

as listed in source literature

Sowerby, G. B. II. (1844).
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Plate xxxii. Fig. 1-3.
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pp: 86.
Sowerby, G. B. II. (1873).
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Plate iv. Fig. 21a.
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Plate iv. Fig. 21b.
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Tryon, G.W. (1887).
Shown in text as Scalaria philippinarum G. B. Sowerby II, 1844
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pp: 66.
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Plate 13. Fig. 18-19.
Clessin, S. (1897).
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Plate 6. Fig. 1.
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pp: 23.
Shell narrow, pyramidal, between the varices yellowish or chestnut, or entirely white; whorls numerous and rounded; varices white, well spaced, slightly angled above; aperture small, rounded.
Cotton, B.C. & Godfrey, F.K. (1931).
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pp: 6.
Kaicher, S.D. (1980).
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Kaicher, S.D. (1981).
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Card #: EP2-3056.
Wilson, B.R. (1993).
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pp: 379. Fig. 23.
Nakayama, T. (2003).
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pp: 126. Plate 12. Fig. 27-29.
figs 27-29: Epitonium (Hyaloscala) philippinarum (Sowerby, 1844)
height 22.7 mm; breadth 8.4 mm (KC); fig. 29, base
Murrell (2025).
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17.4 x 7.9mm
Initertidal, sand and rock.
Minnie Waters, New South Wales, Australia
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Synonymy:

Acutiscala philippinarum (SOWERBY II, 1844-a) [in Higo, S., Callomon, P. & Goto, Y., 1999].
Clathrus philippinarum G. B. Sowerby II, 1844 [in Cotton, B.C. & Godfrey, F.K., 1931].
Epitonium (Hyaloscala) philippinarum (Sowerby, 1844) [in Nakayama, T., 2003].
Scalaria philippinarum G. B. Sowerby II, 1844 [in Brazier, J., 1875].
Scalaria philippinarum G. B. Sowerby II, 1844 [in Clessin, S., 1897].
Scalaria philippinarum G. B. Sowerby II, 1844 [in Reeve, L. A., 1873].
Scalaria philippinarum G. B. Sowerby II, 1844 [in Sowerby, G. B. II., 1844].
Scalaria philippinarum G. B. Sowerby II, 1844 [in Tryon, G.W., 1887].


Source Literature:

Brazier, J. (1875). Shells collected during the Chevert Expedition, with Descriptions of the New Species. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales. 1(3). Linnean Society of New South Wales.. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/22887 [Accessed 3 September 2025]
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]
Clessin, S. (1897). Die Familie der Scalariidae. In W. Kobelt (Ed.), Systematisches Conchylien-Cabinet von Martini und Chemnitz. Neu herausgegeben und vervollständigt. 2(13). Bauer & Raspe, NürnbergBauer & Raspe, Nürnberg. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/34259905 [Accessed 21 June 2025]
Cotton, B.C. & Godfrey, F.K. (1931). South Australian Shells Part II. The South Australian Naturalist. 13(1). Field Naturalists Society of South Australia. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/42129287 [Accessed 8 June 2025]
Higo, S., Callomon, P. & Goto, Y. (1999). Catalogue and Bibliography of the Marine Shell-Bearing Mollusca of Japan.. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266375656_Catalogue_and_Bibliography_of_the_Marine_Shell-Bearing_Mollusca_of_Japan [Accessed 25 July 2025]
Hutchings, P. & Ahyong, S. & Ashcroft, M. & Mcgrouther, Mark & Reid, A. (2013). Sydney Harbour: its diverse biodiversity. Australian Zoologist. 36. http://dx.doi.org/10.7882/AZ.2012.031 [Accessed 28 February 2026]
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]
Kaicher, S.D. (1981). Epitoniidae II [Pack 30]. S. D. Kaicher, St. Petersburg, Florida. http://www.femorale.com/kaicher/species.asp?f=Epitoniidae&c=125 [Accessed 8 May 2023]
Murrell, T. (2025). Personal Collection
Nakayama, T. (2003). A Review of Northwest Pacific Epitoniids. Monographs of Marine Mollusca. 6. Backhuys Publishers
Reeve, L. A. (1873). Monograph of the genus Scalaria. Conchologia iconica, or illustrations of the shells of molluscous animal. 19. London. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8217819 [Accessed 24 August 2023]
Sowerby, G. B. II. (1844). Monograph of the genus Scalaria.. Thesaurus conchyliorum, or monographs of genera of shells.. 1 (4). London, privately published.. http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/11076419 [Accessed 22 June 2023]
Tryon, G.W. (1887). Manual of conchology, structural and systematic with illustrations of the species. IX. Academy of Natural Sciences. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/11026889 [Accessed 20 September 2025]
Weil, A., Brown, L. & Neville, B. (1999). The Wentletrap Book. Evolver
Wells, E., Sanpanich, K., Tan, S. K, & Duangdee, T. (2021). The Marine and Estuarine Molluscs of Thailand. Lee Kong Chian natural History Museum
Wilson, B.R. (1993). Australian Marine Shells. Australian Marine Shells. Vol.1. Odessey Publications
WoRMS Editorial Board, (2025). World Register of Marine Species. https://www.marinespecies.org [Accessed 8 November 2025]

WoRMS direct page link: Open WoRMS record