Thoristella chathamensis profunda

Taxobox
name = "Thoristella chathamensis profunda"
status =
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Mollusca
classis = Gastropoda
subclassis = Prosobranchia
ordo = Archaeogastropoda
superfamilia = Trochacea
familia = Trochidae
genus = "Thoristella"
species = "T. chathamensis"
subspecies = "T. chathamensis profunda"
trinomial = "Thoristella chathamensis profunda"
trinomial_authority = Dell, 1956

"Thoristella chathamensis profunda" is a subspecies of minute, very deepwater sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc, or micromollusk, in the family Trochidae, the top snails or top shells.

Distribution

This subspecies is endemic to New Zealand, off the Otago coast in the South Island.

Habitat

These top snails are found at depths of between 475 and 640 m.

hell description

The shell is small, sharply conical, imperforate, taller than wide, strongly sculptured with heavy dodulous cords, two on the early spire whorls, increasing to three on the penultimate. The base has seven cords, all but the last two weakly nodulous. The shell height is up to 3.8 mm, and width up to 3.5 mm.

References

* Powell A. W. B., "New Zealand Mollusca", William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979 ISBN 0-00-216906-1