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Epitoniidae Berry, 1910 (1812)

Epitonium thelcterium

(Melvill & Standen, 1903)

Description:

Dimensions range from 3.75 mm - 4.15 mm high and 2 mm - 2.5 mm wide.
Width to height ratio: 0.53:1 ~ 0.6:1

Shell: ; minute. Exterior colour whitish. About 8 whorls; protoconch with ~4 whorls smooth, chestnut-white, and slightly glassy; teleoconch with ~4 whorls ventricose. Suture impressed. Imperforate. Approximately 15 costae on the body whorl. Costae slightly reflexed. Intercostal spaces conspicuously spirally ridged. Aperture ovate-round.


Distribution:

Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman [Brown & Neville, 2015:149]


Habitat:

86-285 m [Brown & Neville, 2015:149]


Etymology:

[greek] from thelektrios = charming


Type Material:

Syntype: NHMUK 1903.12.15.17 [as Scala thelcteria Melvill & Standen, 1903:] - Locality: Mussandam, Persian Gulf, 47 fms [= 86 m]; Gulf of Oman, 24° 58' N, 56° 54' E, 156 fms [= 285 m].. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]


SpeciesImage

Melvill, J. C. & Standen, R (1903). Plate VII. Fig. 13.

Scala thelcteria sp.n. (Pl. VII., fig. I3).

Distribution

as listed in source literature

Melvill, J. C. & Standen, R (1903).
Species Image
Plate VII. Fig. 13.
Scala thelcteria sp.n. (Pl. VII., fig. I3).
Species Image
pp: 346-347.
Bonfitto, A. (2018).
Species Image
pp: 126. Plate 4. Fig. L.
Scala thelcteria Melvill & Standen, 1903,
syntype (NHMUK 1903.12.15.17), Mussandam,
Persian Gulf, F.W. Townsend collection

Synonymy:

Scala thelcteria Melvill & Standen, 1903: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].


Source Literature:

Bonfitto, A. (2018). New species of Epitoniidae (Gastropoda: Epitonioidea) from the Red Sea. Molluscan Research. 38:2. Taylor 7 Francis. https://doi.org/10.1080/13235818.2017.1385168 [Accessed 26 August 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]
Melvill, J. C. & Standen, R (1903). 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]
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