Scutus unguis explained

Scutus unguis, common name the northern duck's bill, is a species of large sea snail or limpet, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Fissurellidae, the keyhole limpets and slit limpets.

Description

The length of the shell attains 25.7 mm.

White shell, up to 6 cm long, distinctive by absence of slit or apical hole, though there is a small indent in the posterior margin. The mantle has purple brown markings on a cream background. Habitat: shallow-water rocks and coral. (Richmond, 1997)

Distribution

This marine species occurs in the Indo-west Pacific, from the Red Sea to the Solomon Islands; also off Papua New Guinea and Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia).

References

• Blainville, M.H. de 1817. Sur la Patelle allongée de Chemnitz. Bulletin des Sciences, par la Société Philomathique de Paris 1817: 25–28
• Allan, J.K. 1950. Australian shells: with related animals living in the sea, in freshwater and on the land. Melbourne : Georgian House xix, 470 pp., 45 pls, 112 text figs.
• Knudsen J. (1992). Preliminary list of common marine prosobranch gastropods (Mollusca) from Hoi Ha Wan. In: Morton B, editor. Proceedings of the Fourth International Marine Biological Workshop: The Marine Flora and Fauna of Hong Kong and Southern China. The marine flora and fauna of Hong Kong and southern China III. Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong. 2: pp 919–921
• Abbott, R. T. & Dance, S. P. (1986). Compendium of sea shells. American Malacologists, Inc: Melbourne, Florida
• Jarrett, A.G. (2000) Marine Shells of the Seychelles. Carole Green Publishing, Cambridge, xiv + 149 pp. NIZT 682
• Kilburn, R.N. & Rippey, E. (1982) Sea Shells of Southern Africa. Macmillan South Africa, Johannesburg, xi + 249 pp.
• Kilburn, R. N. (1978). The Emarginulinae (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Fissurellidae) of southern Africa and Mozambique. Annals of the Natal Museum. 23(2): 431–454.
• Herbert D.G. (1987) Taxonomic studies on the Emarginulinae (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Fissurellidae) of southern Africa and Mozambique. Hemitoma, Clypidina, Tugali, Scutus, Zeidora and two species of Emarginula. South African Journal of Zoology 22(1): 1–13.
• Drivas, J. & Jay, M. (1987). Coquillages de La Réunion et de l'Île Maurice. Collection Les Beautés de la Nature. Delachaux et Niestlé: Neuchâtel. ISBN 2-603-00654-1. 159 pp.
• Fowler, O. (2016). Seashells of the Kenya coast. ConchBooks: Harxheim. Pp. 1–170.

External links

• Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Editio decima, reformata [10th revised edition], vol. 1: 824 pp. Laurentius Salvius: Holmiae
• Reeve, L. A. (1841–1842). Conchologia Systematica, or complete system of conchology; in which the Lepades and conchiferous Mollusca are described and classified according to their natural organization and habits. Longman, Brown, Green, & Longman's, London.
• Adams, A. (1853). A monograph of Scutus, a genus of gasteropodous Mollusca belonging to the family Fissurellidae. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 19
• Herbert D.G. (2015). An annotated catalogue and bibliography of the taxonomy, synonymy and distribution of the Recent Vetigastropoda of South Africa (Mollusca). Zootaxa. 4049(1): 1–98