Epitoniidae Berry, 1910 (1812)

Boreoscala greenlandica

(Perry, 1811)

Description:

Dimensions range from 15 mm - 61 mm high and 4 mm - 60 mm wide.
Width to height ratio: 0.27:1 ~ 0.98:1

Shell: attenuate, slender, elongate, conical; chalky, thick; small to medium. Exterior colour uniform greyish tan to chalky white, may be somewhat shiny or without lustre, costae white. About 16 whorls, moderately convex, joined; protoconch with 2-4 whorls smooth, usually eroded; teleoconch with 6-12 whorls moderately convex. Suture moderately impressed, not deep. Imperforate. Approximately 9 - 34 costae on the body whorl. Costae are blade-like to ridge-like, thick, curved and may be expanded at the suture, sometimes nearly covering the intercostal spaces. Costae slightly raised toward the suture; reflected; connected across the suture. Intercostal spaces with flattened spiral striae. Interstices with approximately 8 - 10 spiral striae per whorl. Base with well developed basal ridge with flattened spiral striae below. Base with 3 - 8 spiral striae, Columella short and arched. Aperture subovate to circular, lip thickened. Operculum black, horny, with a narrow brown border..

Distribution:

Probably cireumpolar [Clench & Turner, 1952]. Arctic Ocean near Point Barrow, Alaska, south to British Columbia, Canada; Siberia and northern Japan [Dushane, 1974], Hokkaido to Boso Peninsula, Japan; widely in the northern Pacific, Atlantic, Arctic Ocean [Nakayama, 2003], Circumboreal, Scandinavia, Iceland [Brezinger et al., 2020]; Atlantic south to Long Island [Weil et al., 1999:12]

Habitat:

Shallow subtidal to upper continental slope [ Alf et al., 2020], subtidal to 650 m., sandy mud [Higo, et al., 1999]

Type Material:

Types. The whereabouts of Perry's types isunknown to us. We here restrict the type locality to Godthaab, southwest Greenland, one of the several localities listed by Posselt. The type specimen of Scalaria subulata Couthouy has been lost. The type of Scalaria planicosta Kiener is in the Paris Museum. A cotype of S. grénlandica var. crebricostata G. O. Sars is in the Oslo Museum, Oslo, Norway. for Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811). [Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D., 1952]
Types. The type of HE. greenlandicum lovenu A. Adams is probably in the British Museum. The type locality is here restricted to Vardo, Norway. [as Boreoscala greenlandica f. lovenii (A. Adams, 1856)]. [Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D., 1952]
Types. The holotype of Scalaria groenlandica ornata Friele and Grieg is in the Zoologisk Museum, Universitetet, Bergen, Norway, no. 21669. We figure the holotype from station 124 (N. Lat. 66°41'; EK. Long. 6°59') off Vest Fjorden, Norway. [as Boreoscala greenlandica norvegicum (Clench & R. D. Turner, 1952), Epitonium greenlandicum ornatum Friele and Grieg, Scalaria ornata Friele & Grieg, 1901]. [Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D., 1952]
Type: Scalaria greenlandicum Perry: Holotype lost (Clench & Turner, 1952: 320); type locality restricted to Godthaab, southwest Greenland (Clench & Turner, loc. cit.). Epitonium (Boreoscala) greenlandicum smithi MacNeil: Holotype USNM 499037; Inner Submarine Beach, Nome for Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811). [DuShane, H., 1979]
Type not listed in source data for Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811) - Locality: Greenland (restricted by Clench and Turner, 1952: 320).. [Kazunori, H., 2009]
Types: S. greenlandica, not located; S. loveni, Cambridge Museum. for Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811) - Locality: S. greenlandica, restricted by Clench & Turner (1952:320) to Godthaab, SW Greenland.. [Bouchet, P. & Warén, A., 1986]
Type not indicated in text [as Cirsotrema (Boreoscala) greenlandicum (Perry, 1811)] - Locality: Greenland. [Nakayama, T., 2003]
Type not located by either Clench & Turner (1952: 320) or Bouchet & Warén (1986: 518). for Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811) - Locality: restricted to Godthaab, southwest Greenland, by Clench & Turner (loc. cit.).. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type not located for Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811) - Locality: not designated.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Cotype: ZMO figured by Clench & Turner (1952: 321, pl. 154, fig. 3). [as Scalaria grønlandica var. crebricostata Sars, 1878:] - Locality: Vadsø, Norway.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type: “ex museo nostro,” presumably the figured specimen. [as Turbo Clathrus groenlandicus Chemnitz, 1795 in Martini & Chemnitz, 1769-1829:] - Locality: Greenland.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type: Cambridge Museum (Bouchet & Warén 1986: 518). [as Scalaria lovenii A. Adams, 1856:] - Locality: “Ad litt. Scandinaviæ,” restricted to Vardö, Norway by Clench & Turner 1952: 322).. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type not located [as Scalaria grönlandica var. major Kobelt, 1888:] - Locality: not designated.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type not located [as Scalaria trevelyana var. major Locard 1897:] - Locality: côtes océaniques de France.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type not located [as Scalaria mediterranea var. major Locard in Locard & Caziot, 1899:] - Locality: Corsica.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type not located [as Opalia major Pallary, 1900] - Locality: Oran, Algeria.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type: Zoologisk Museum, Universitetet, Bergen, Norway, no. 21669, figured by Clench & Turner (1952: 324). [as Scalaria goenlandica var. ornata Friele & Grieg, 1901:] - Locality: Norwegian North Atlantic Expedition 1876-78, S.S. Vöringen Station 124, off Trænen, Helgeland, Norway, 66o 41'N, 06o 59'E, 350 fms [= 640 m].. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type: “Collect. du Mus.”; while Clench & Turner (1952: 320) report that the type is at the MNHN, it is not listed in the MNHN type catalog. [as Scalaria planicosta Kiener, 1838:] - Locality: not given.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Type: “My own Collection. Cabinet of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist. and of N. Y. Lyceum of Nat. Hist.” [ Couthouy, 1838]. Type locality: “Mass. Bay, vicinity of Cape Ann.” Status: a junior primary homonym of Scalaria subulata J. Sowerby, 1812: vol. 4, 125, pl. 390, fig. 1; per Clench & Turner (1952: 320), a junior subjective synonym of Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811a). [as Scalaria subulata Couthouy, 1838:]. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
Syntype: KPM-NG0102035 [as Borcoscala groenlandium japonicum (SHIKAMA, 1962)] - Locality: East to southeast of Choshi (eastern central Honshü). [Higo, S., Callomon, P. & Goto, Y., 2001]

SpeciesImage

Dall, W. H. (1925). Plate 22. Fig. 2.

Boreoscala greenlandica Perry, alt. 52 mm

Distribution

as listed in source literature

Sowerby, J. & Sowerby, J. de C. (1823).

Shown in text as Boreoscala subulata (Couthouy, 1838)

Species Image

Plate cccxc. Fig. 1.

Species Image

Plate cccxc. Fig. 1.

Species Image

pp: 125.

Sowerby, G. B. II. (1844).

Shown in text as Scalaria greenlandica G. Perry, 1811

Species Image

Plate xxxiv. Fig. 110.

Species Image

pp: 101.

Shell elongate, thick, spiral grooved; with contiguous whorls, barely prominent; varices reclining; unequal, expanding toward the suture, bent back, and elevated toward the nearest whorl; aperture somewhat triangular, with a grayish-dark colour between the varices.

Species Image

Plate xxxiv. Fig. 105.

Sowerby, G. B. II. (1873-1874).

Shown in text as Scalaria greenlandica G. Perry, 1811

Species Image

Plate xiv. Fig. 107a.

Species Image

Plate xiv. Fig. 107b.

Species Image

Tryon, G.W. (1887).

Shown in text as Scalaria groenlandica Chemnitz, 1795 in Martini & Chemnitz

Species Image

Plate 16. Fig. 91.

Species Image

pp: 76.

Species Image

pp: 76.

Clessin, S. (1897).

Species Image

pp: 65-66.

Shell solid, white, opaque, somewhat shiny, narrowly turreted, with a rather attenuated spire; whorls 9B

Species Image

Plate 17. Fig. 1.

Species Image

Plate 17. Fig. 3.

Dall, W. H. (1925).

Shown in text as Boreoscala greenlandica Perry, 1811

Species Image

Plate 22. Fig. 2.

Boreoscala greenlandica Perry, alt. 52 mm

Species Image

pp: 6.

Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D. (1952).

Shown in text as Boreoscala greenlandica f. lovenii (A. Adams, 1856)

Species Image

pp: 323. Plate 155. Fig. 2.

Epitonium greenlandicum loventt A. Adams from Browns Bank off Cape Sable, Nova Scotia in 40 fathoms (2.8x).

Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D. (1952).

Species Image

pp: 321. Plate 154. Fig. 1-3.

Epitonium greenlandicum Perry
Fig. 1. From Middle Bank, off Massachusetts in 35 fathoms (3x).
Fig. 2. From Swampscott, Massachusetts (2.8x).
Fig. 3. Epitonium greenlandicum crebricostatum Sars (= greenlandicum Perry), from Vadsé, Norway. Cotype (3.5x)

Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D. (1952).

Shown in text as Boreoscala greenlandica norvegicum (Clench & R. D. Turner, 1952), Epitonium greenlandicum ornatum Friele and Grieg, Scalaria ornata Friele & Grieg, 1901

Species Image

pp: 323. Plate 155. Fig. 1.

Plate 155
Fig. 1. Epitonium greenlandicum ornatum Friele and Grieg
(= E. norvegicum Clench and Turner) from off Vest Fjorden, Norway. Holotype (2.8x).

Dushane, H. (1979).

Species Image

pp: 103. Fig. 18.

Figure 18: Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 181 1). Greenland From Perry, 181 1 :
pit. 28, fig. 8

Species Image

pp: 103. Fig. 19-20.

Fig 19: Boreoscala greenlandica (Perry, 1811). Queen Char- lotte Islands, B. C, Canada, from 146 m, rock and sand sub- strate, collected by Bernard and Quayle, October, 1966; length, 39 mm; width, 14 mm (DuShane Collection) X 3

Figure 20: Boreoscala greenlandica smithi (MacNeill, 1943). Hol- otype, USNM 499037; length, 14.6 mm; width, 8 mm; Pliocene X 3

Bouchet, P. & Warén, A. (1986).

Species Image

pp: 518. Fig. 1210.

Figs 1210-1213. Epitonium greenlandicum. 1210, Greenland, 93 mm. 121, 66°23N, 20°15W, 80 m, 20.0 mm. 1212, very young specimen, Trondheimfjord, Norway, 1.95 mm. 1213, recently hatched juvenile. Bergen area. Norway. 1.4 mm.

Species Image

pp: 518.

Higo, S., Callomon, P. and Goto, Y. (2001).

Shown in text as Borcoscala groenlandium japonicum (SHIKAMA, 1962)

Species Image

pp: 54. Fig. G1877s.

G1877s
23.7
Borcoscala groenlandium
japonicum (SHIKAMA, 1962)
ST: KPM-NG0102035

Nakayama, T. (2003).

Shown in text as Cirsotrema (Boreoscala) greenlandicum (Perry, 1811)

Species Image

pp: 111. Plate 4. Fig. 20-22.

Cirsotrema (Boreoscala) greenlandicum (Perry, 1811)
height 60.0 mm; breadth 22.0 mm (NA); fig. 22, base

Kazunori, H. (2009).

Species Image

pp: 274. Fig. 138.

138. Boreoscala greenlandica, WA05-EF250D (empty shell).

Species Image

pp: 275.

Synonymy:

Borcoscala groenlandium japonicum (SHIKAMA, 1962) [in Higo, S., Callomon, P. & Goto, Y., 2001].
Boreoscala greenlandica f. lovenii (A. Adams, 1856) [in Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D., 1952].
Boreoscala greenlandica norvegicum (Clench & R. D. Turner, 1952), Epitonium greenlandicum ornatum Friele and Grieg, Scalaria ornata Friele & Grieg, 1901 [in Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D., 1952].
Boreoscala greenlandica Perry, 1811 [in Dall, W. H., 1925].
Boreoscala subulata (Couthouy, 1838) [in Sowerby, J. & Sowerby, J. de C., 1823].
Cirsotrema (Boreoscala) greenlandicum (Perry, 1811) [in Nakayama, T., 2003].
Epitonium greenlandicum norvegicum Clench & Turner, 1952: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Opalia major Pallary, 1900 [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria goenlandica var. ornata Friele & Grieg, 1901: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria greenlandica G. Perry, 1811 [in Sowerby, G. B. II., 1844].
Scalaria greenlandica G. Perry, 1811 [in Sowerby, G. B. II., 1873-1874].
Scalaria groenlandica Chemnitz, 1795 in Martini & Chemnitz [in Tryon, G.W., 1887].
Scalaria grønlandica var. crebricostata Sars, 1878: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria grönlandica var. major Kobelt, 1888: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria lovenii A. Adams, 1856 [in Tryon, G.W., 1887].
Scalaria lovenii A. Adams, 1856: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria mediterranea var. major Locard in Locard & Caziot, 1899: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria planicosta Kiener, 1838: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria subulata Couthouy, 1838: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria trevelyana var. major Locard 1897: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Turbo Clathrus groenlandicus Chemnitz, 1795 in Martini & Chemnitz, 1769-1829: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].

Source Literature:

Alf, A., Brenzinger, B., Haszprunar, G., Schrödl, M. & Schwabe, E. (2020). A Guide to Marine Molluscs of Europe. Conch Books. Conch Books
Bouchet, P. & Warén, A. (1986). Revision of the Northeast Atlantic bathyal and abyssal Aclididae Eulimidae, Epitonidae (Mollusca, Gastropoda).. Bollettino Malacologico.. suppl. 2. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/140762 [Accessed 21 September 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]
Clench, W. J. & Turner, R. D. (1952). The Genus Epitonium in the Western Atlantic pt 2. Jonsonia. 2(31). The Department of Mollusks Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard University. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/41155986#page/303/mode/1up [Accessed 25 June 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]
Dall, W. H. (1925). Illustrations of unfigured types of shells in the collections of the United States National Museum. Proceedings of the United States National Museum. 66(2554). https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/7738736 [Accessed 18 September 2025]
DuShane, H. (1979). The Family Epitoniidae in the Northeastern Pacific. The Veliger. 22(2). California Malacozoological Society, Inc.. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/134937#page/7/mode/1up [Accessed 28 June 2023]
Gulbin, V. V. (2010). Review of the Shell-bearing Gastropods in the Russian Waters of the East Sea. II. Caenogastropoda: Sorbeoconcha, Hypsogastropoda. Korean Journal of Malacology. 26(2). https://koreascience.kr/article/JAKO201018860403872.pdf [Accessed 20 September 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]
Higo, S., Callomon, P. & Goto, Y. (2001). Catalogue and Bibliography of the Marine Shell-Bearing Molluscs of Japan. Type Figures. Elle Scientific Publications
Kazunori, H. (2009). Upper bathyal gastropods of of the Pacific coast of northern Honshu, Japan, chiefly collected by R/V Wakataka-Maru. National Museum of Nature and Science Monographs. 29. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285740752 [Accessed 25 August 2023]
Nakayama, T. (2003). A Review of Northwest Pacific Epitoniids. Monographs of Marine Mollusca. 6. Backhuys Publishers
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]
Sowerby, G. B. II. (1873-1874). Monograph of the genus Scalaria. Conchologia iconica, or illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals, vol. 19, pls 1-16 and unpaginated text.. 19. London. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8217819 [Accessed 24 August 2023]
Sowerby, J. & Sowerby, J. de C. (1823). The mineral conchology of Great Britain Vol IV. The mineral conchology of Great Britain; or, Coloured figures and descriptions of those remains of testaceous animals or shells, which have been preserved at various times and depths in the earth. Vol. IV.. IV. Privately published by author, London,. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/14392771 [Accessed 24 August 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
WoRMS Editorial Board (2025). World Register of Marine Species. https://www.marinespecies.org [Accessed 8 November 2025]

WoRMS direct page link: Open WoRMS record