Dendropoma gregarium explained

Dendropoma gregarium is a worm snail common in intertidal and subtidal areas in Hawaiʻi and the tropical Pacific.^[1]

Description

The Dendropoma gregarium is a worm snail in the family Vermetidae.^[2] It is identifiable by its brown shell that forms in irregular coils around its body, making it resemble a worm.^[3]

Distribution

D. gregarium is found in Hawaii and the Tropical Eastern Pacific.^[4] In Hawaiian it is known as kio pōhakupele or kio po'apo'ai. ^[5]

Habitat

D. gregarium inhabit the intertidal and subtidal zone. All worm snails are sessile, they attach to rocks or hard surfaces where they will remain for their entire lives.^[6] While on these rocks they often look like small black holes.^[7]

Further reading

• Golding . R. E. . Bieler . R. . Rawlings . T. A. . Collins . T. M. . 2014 . Deconstructing Dendropoma: a systematic revision of a world-wide worm-snail group with descriptions of new genera (Caenogastropoda: Vermetidae) . Malacologia . 57 . 1 . 1–97. 10.4002/040.057.0103 .
• The Vermetidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda) of the Hawaiian Islands . Hadfield . M. G. . Kay . E. A. . Gillette . M.U. . Lloyd . M.C. . 1972 . Marine Biology . 12 . 1 . 81–98. 10.1007/BF00347431 . 1972MarBi..12...81H .
• Catalogue of Recent and fossil "worm-snail" taxa of the families Vermetidae, Siliquariidae, and Turritellidae (Mollusca: Caenogastropoda) . Bieler . R. . Petit . R. E. . 2011 . Zootaxa . 2948 . 1–103. 10.11646/zootaxa.2948.1.1 .

Notes and References

1. Dendropoma gregarium M. G. Hadfield & Kay, 1972 . 594489 . 2022-09-09.
2. Book: Reef and shore fauna of Hawaii. 4: Mollusca / E. Alison Kay . 1979 . Bishop Museum Press . 978-0-910240-26-0 . Kay . E. Alison . Bishop Museum special publication . Honolulu, Hawai'i.
3. Web site: Gregarious Worm Snail, Dendropoma gregarium . 2024-04-15 . www.marinelifephotography.com.
4. Dendropoma gregarium Hadfield & Kay ex Hadfield et al. 1972 . 4878082 . 2024-04-15.
5. Book: Philippoff . Joanna . A Field Guide to Hawai'i's Coastal Organisms: Algae and Invertebrates . Wood . Caroline . Morishige . Kanoe . La Valle . Florybeth F. . Wood . Matthew . Faucci . Anuschka . 2018 . 978-1-58351-165-7.
6. Web site: Worm shell Marine, Mollusk & Gastropod Britannica . 2024-04-15 . www.britannica.com . en.
7. Web site: Dendropoma gregaria . 2024-04-15 . OPIHI . en-US.