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Epitoniidae Berry, 1910 (1812)

Amaea foulisi

Kilburn, 1985

Description:

Dimensions range from 13.5 mm - 16 mm high and 5.3 mm - 5.7 mm wide.
Width to height ratio: 0.39:1 ~ 0.36:1

Shell: acuminate; thin; small. Exterior colour yellowish-white, suffused in places with yellowish-brown. About 12 whorls; protoconch conical with ~2 whorls translucent convex whorls; teleoconch with ~10 whorls strongly convex. Spire strongly convex. Suture deep, almost channelled. Imperforate: umbilicus closed. Approximately 20 - 36 costae on the body whorl. Costae are prosocline, thin, fragile, low, erect, almost straight. Costae form a slight angle next to suture. Intercostal spaces with microscopic spiral striae. Interstices with approximately 22 spiral striae per whorl. Base concave, without spiral cords. Columella is slightly expanded basally. Fasciole absent, without a spiral cord. Aperture ovate-quadrate; peristome thin.


Distribution:

Japan [Nakayama, 2003:12], Taiwan [Huang & Lee, 2016:14]; off Transkei, South Africa [Kilburn, 1985:246].


Habitat:

sand and shell debris, 80-120m [Nakayama, 2003:12].


Etymology:

As stated by the author [Kilburn, 1985: 246], this species is named after Captain George Foulis of the R /V Meiring Naudé.


Type Material:

Holotype: NM C5835/T2887 [as Amaea (Amaea) foulisi Kilburn, 1985] - Type Locality: off Ubombo (31°54,8'S, 29°18,8'E), 80 m, mixed sand, mud, shell debris, dredged MN.. [Kilburn, 1985: 246]


SpeciesImage

Kilburn, R.N. (1985). pp: 246. Plate 10.

holotype: 15.7 x 5.3 mm.

Distribution

as listed in source literature

Kilburn, R.N. (1985).
Shown in text as Amaea (Amaea) foulisi Kilburn, 1985
Species Image
pp: 246. Fig. 10.
holotype: 15.7 x 5.3 mm.
Nakayama, T. (2003).
Species Image
pp: 113. Plate 5. Fig. 22.
Amaca (Amaea) foulisi Kilburn, 1985
height 13.5 mm; breadth 5.7 mm (WMNH-Mo-Na222); fig. 24, base

Synonymy:

Amaea (Amaea) foulisi Kilburn, 1985 [Kilburn, 1985: 246; Nakayama, 2003: 12; Brown & Neville, 2015: 74; Weil et al., 1999: 50; Huang & Lee, 2016: 14]


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]
Huang, C. W. & Lee, Y.C. (2016). Checklist of the family Epitoniidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda) in Taiwan with description of a new species and some new records. Biodiversity Data Journal. 4. doi: 10.3897/ BDJ.4.e5653 [Accessed 25 August 2023]
Kilburn, R.N. (1985). The family Epitoniidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda) in southern Africa and Mozambique. Annals of the Natal Museum. 27(1). Natal Museum
Nakayama, T. (2003). A Review of Northwest Pacific Epitoniids. Monographs of Marine Mollusca. 6. Backhuys Publishers
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