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Epitoniidae Berry, 1910 (1812)

Epitonium immaculatum

(G. B. Sowerby II, 1844)

Description:

Dimensions range from 16.35 mm - 39 mm high and 5.88 mm - 8.2 mm wide.
Width to height ratio: 0.36:1 ~ 0.21:1

Shell: elongate conical; small to moderately small. Exterior colour white. About 10 whorls, body whorl well rounded without basal keel, contiguous; protoconch usually eroded. Spire convex. Suture deep. Umbilicate: narrowly perforated. Approximately 30 - 40 costae on the body whorl. Costae are very thin, unequal, disappearing in the middle of the whorls. There is a single varix on each whorl. The varix is some costae form strong varices. Costae crenulated at the suture. Intercostal spaces spiral striae and microscopic axial striae. Interstices with approximately 50 spiral striae per whorl. Aperture ovate; peristome thickened and reflexed but incomplete. Periostracum white in colour.


Distribution:

southern part of Japan, Philippines to Queensland, Australia; Tuamotus, French Polynesia


Habitat:

10-50 m on sandy or sandy mud substrate


Etymology:

[latin] from immaculatus = unstained, in reference to the whiteness of the shell


Type Material:

Syntype: NHMUK 1981044 (syntypes) [as Scalaria immaculata G.B. Sowerby II, 1844:] - Type Locality: Catanauan, Luzon, Philippines. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]
MHNN. [as Scala venusta Fenaux, 1943:] - Type Locality: Paumotou.. [Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015]


SpeciesImage

Sowerby, G. B. II. (1844). Plate xxxiii. Fig. 58.

Distribution

as listed in source literature

Sowerby, G. B. II. (1844).
Species Image
Plate xxxiii. Fig. 58.
Species Image
pp: 93.
Proc.39.Sc.iMMACULATA. (pi.xxxiii.f.58.)Soiv.Jun.Zool.
T. Scalarise vestali similima, sed magis elongata, umbilico majori, varicibus prope suturam simplicibus.
Brought by Mr. Cuming from Catanauan.
Isl.Luzon, PhiUppines.
Sowerby, G. B. II. (1873).
Species Image
Plate iv. Fig. 24.
Species Image
Species 24. (Mus. Brit.)
SCALARIA IMMACULATA.
Sea. testû alba, elongatt, sub-
umbilicatû, spiraliter striatà; anfractibus rotundatis, contiguis, ad suturam crenulatis; varicibus tenuis-sims, incequalibus, medio anfracturm evanidis;
aperturd ovata.
The IMMACULaTE ScaLarIa.
Shell white, elongated,
subumbilicated, spirally striated; whorls rounded, contiguous, crenulated at the suture; varices very thin, unequal, disappearing in the middle of the whorls; aperture ovate.
SOWErBY. Zool. Proc. Thes. Conch., Sp. 39, fig. 58.
Hab. Catanuan, Isl. Luzon, Philippines.
Tryon, G.W. (1887).
Species Image
Plate 12. Fig. 80.
Species Image
pp: 61.
Kaicher, S.D. (1980).
Species Image
Whitish; with numerous fine, low oblique costae; finely, spirally striate; to approx. 23+ mm.
(BMNH type coll. 198144-syntype)
Nakayama, T. (2003).
Species Image
pp: 115. Plate 7. Fig. 3-5.
Amaca (Filiscala) immaculata (Sowerby, 1844) height 20.0 mm; breadth 8.2 mm (KC); fig. 5, base

Synonymy:

Scala venusta Fenaux, 1943: [in Brown, L. & Neville, B.D., 2015].
Scalaria immaculata


Source Literature:

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]
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]
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]
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). 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]
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