Vexillum vulpecula explained

Vexillum vulpecula (common name: the Little Fox Mitre) is a species of small sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Costellariidae, the ribbed miters.^[1]

Description

The shell size varies between 27 mm and 72 mm.

The shell is stoutly fusiform with a high spire. The spire is acuminated. The seven whorls are transversely impressly striated with narrow spiral grooves, sometimes smooth towards the upper part and longitudinally ribbed. The ribs are rude, obtuse, of the body whorl sometimes indistinct. The ribs become strong at the angular shoulder. The suture is channeled. The outer lip is slightly concave and lirate within. The shell is whitish or yellowish orange, more or less banded with brown, sometimes encircled with pale reddish fillets, base and apex blackish. The white columella is four-plaited, stained at the upper part with black.^[2]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Indo-West Pacific near Madagascar and Mozambique and in the Pacific Ocean the Philippines, Fiji and Okinawa; also off New Caledonia and Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia).

References

• De Mar 1877. Cas tératologiques. Recherches Fauna Madagascar 3 5: pp. 1–21
• Dautzenberg, Ph. (1929). Mollusques testacés marins de Madagascar. Faune des Colonies Françaises, Vol. III
• Cernohorsky, W.O. 1970. Systematics of the families Mitridae & Volutomitridae (Mollusca: Gastropoda). Bulletin of the Auckland Institute and Museum. Auckland, New Zealand 8: 1-190
• Hinton, A. 1972. Shells of New Guinea and the central Indo-Pacific. Milton : Jacaranda Press xviii 94 pp.
• Turner, H. 1989. Ungewöhnliche und neue Mitroidea aus dem Indopazifik. Teil 1. Club Conchylia Informationen 21(5/6): 30-62
• Wilson, B. 1994. Australian marine shells. Prosobranch gastropods. Kallaroo, WA : Odyssey Publishing Vol. 2 370 pp.
• Salisbury, R. 2000. Costellariidae of the World, Pt. 3. Of Sea and Shore 23(1): 4-14
• Turner H. 2001. Katalog der Familie Costellariidae Macdonald, 1860. Conchbooks. 1-100 page(s): 68
• Arnaud, J.P., Berthault, C., Jeanpierre, R., Martin, J.C. & Martin, P. 2002. Costellariidae et Mitridae de Nouvelle Calédonie. Xenophora. Association française de conchyliologie. Supplément 100: 52 pp.
• Thach, N.N. 2002. The miters of Vietnam. Of Sea and Shore 25(1): 40-51
• Steyn, D. G.; Lussi, M. (2005). Offshore Shells of Southern Africa: A pictorial guide to more than 750 Gastropods. Published by the authors. pp. i–vi, 1–289.

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
• Swainson, W. (1820-1823). Zoological Illustrations, or, original figures and descriptions of new, rare, or interesting animals, selected chiefly from the classes of ornithology, entomology, and conchology, and arranged on the principles of Cuvier and other modern zoologists. London: Baldwin, Cradock & Joe; Strand: W. Wood. (Vol. 1-3): pl. 1-18
• Küster, H. C. (1838-1841). Die Familie der Walzenschnecken. (Volutacea, Menke.) Systematisches Conchylien-Cabinet von Martini und Chemnitz, ed.2, 5(2): vii-x, pp. 1-234, pls A, B, 1-49, 17a-e. Published in parts
• Sowerby, G. B. III. (1879). Descriptions of ten new species of shells. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 1878: 795–798, pl. 48. (April 1879)
• Fischer von Waldheim, G. (1807). Museum Demidoff, ou, Catalogue systématique et raisonné des curiosités de la nature et de l'art: données à l'Université Impériale de Moscou par son excellence Monsieur Paul de Demidoff. Tome III. Végétaux et Animaux. Moscow: Imprimerie de Université Impériale de Moscou. 300 pp, 6 pls
• Röding, P. F. (1798). Museum Boltenianum sive Catalogus cimeliorum e tribus regnis naturæ quæ olim collegerat Joa. Fried Bolten, M. D. p. d. per XL. annos proto physicus Hamburgensis. Pars secunda continens Conchylia sive Testacea univalvia, bivalvia & multivalvia. Trapp, Hamburg, viii + 199 pp
• Cernohorsky, Walter Oliver. The Mitridae of Fiji; The veliger vol. 8 (1965)

Notes and References

1. MolluscaBase eds. (2023). MolluscaBase. Vexillum vulpecula (Linnaeus, 1758). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=591540 on 2023-05-30}
2. https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8937231 Reeve, L. A. (1844-1845). Monograph of the genus Mitra. In: Conchologia Iconica, or, illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals, vol. 2, pl. 1-39 and unpaginated text. L. Reeve & Co., London.