Shell: small to moderately small, light, ovate to elonge-ovate, ranging from 17-31 mm.
Spire partially concealed . Teeth: 16 to 19 columellar teeth; 17 to 21 labral teeth.
Sculpture: smooth or weakly pustule, porcelaneous; margins calloused, heavily pitted and ridged along the edge; columellar teeth extending partially across the base.
Aperture elongate, narrow.
Exterior colour dark fawn; dorsum dusted with diffuse white spots and clouds ; base and margins white; teeth stained with orange; terminals orange. Mantle line weak. .
Specimens
forma: facifer (Iredale, 1935) This form from Australia. Oval to elongate. Bluish dorsum; distant spotting; pustulation coars and indistinct; blunt extremities, calloused. The Wrecks to Myora Light, Australia Size: mm Collected: 1989 found on underside of coraline rock in area of muddy sand and sea grass. 0.4m tide
forma: facifer (Iredale, 1935) This form from Australia. Oval to elongate. Bluish dorsum; distant spotting; pustulation coars and indistinct; blunt extremities, calloused. Alexandra Headland, Australia Size: 25mm Collected: Unknown No data.
forma: facifer (Iredale, 1935) This form from Australia. Oval to elongate. Bluish dorsum; distant spotting; pustulation coars and indistinct; blunt extremities, calloused. Myora light, Australia Size: 31mm Collected: 1997 No data.
forma: facifer (Iredale, 1935) This form from Australia. Oval to elongate. Bluish dorsum; distant spotting; pustulation coars and indistinct; blunt extremities, calloused. Wilson Island, Australia Size: 30.05mm Collected: Unknown Collected at low tide.
Rosemary Island, Australia Size: 30mm Collected: Unknown Under coral slabs or rubble reef at extreme low tide.
Bohol, Philippines Size: mm Collected: 1985 No data.
Mactan Island, Philippines Size: 24.52mm Collected: Unknown Under coral slabs on reef at 8-10m depth.
forma: staphylaeaformis Lorenz, 1989 Coarse pustules, teeth extending onto margins Mactan Island, Philippines Size: 30.97mm Collected: Unknown No data.
forma: staphylaeaformis Lorenz, 1989 This form has course pustules with teeth extending on to the margins. Punta Engano, Philippines Size: 23mm Collected: Unknown On shallow reefs.
Subspecies: Staphylaea limacina interstincta (Wood, 1828) This subspecies from Western Indian Ocean. Greyish brown to purple dorsum; finer, denser spotting; pustules absent or indistinct; aperture wider; extremities less calloused; columelar teeth finer extending far onto the base. Pemba Island, Tanzania Size: 17.1mm Collected: Unknown Collected on shallow reefs at low tide by local collectors.
Gold Coast, Australia Size: mm Collected: 2018 forma facifer Photographed by diver. Courtesy D Preston.
