Inquisitor glauce is a species of predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Pseudomelatomidae.[1] It was first documented by E. A. Smith in 1888.[2] I. glauce is not a broadcast spawner, meaning it does not release unfertilized eggs into the water. Unlike many gastropods, the trochophore stage is not present in the life cycle of these predatory sea snails, meaning it is not found as a veliger.[3][4] Very little is known about its diet or habits due to its small size and residence in benthic depths.
| Inquisitor glauce | |
|---|---|
| |
| Shell of Inquisitor glauce | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Subclass: | Caenogastropoda |
| Order: | Neogastropoda |
| Superfamily: | Conoidea |
| Family: | Pseudomelatomidae |
| Genus: | Inquisitor |
| Species: | I. glauce
|
| Binomial name | |
| Inquisitor glauce (Dall, 1918)
| |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Taxonomy edit
First documented in 1888 by E. A. Smith, it was given the name Pleurotoma (Drillia) ventricosa.[2] However, this name was not accepted taxonomically as it was a junior homonym of Pleurotoma ventricosa (Lamarck, 1804), another species of sea snail.[5] Pleurotoma glauce was its replacement name, and in 1918, it was given the modern name Inquisitor glauce.[2]
Description edit
The shell grows to a length of 27.5 mm; its diameter 9.5 mm.[6]
The overall shape of the shell is oval and spirally closely lined. The general colouration of this shell is reddish testaceous and is slightly washed with white. The white lines in the middle of the whorls is more distinct than the others. The aperture is red-brown and long, equal to about ½ of the total length. It is truncated at the base. The anterior canal is short and oblique. The columella is straight, lined with a thin callous. The callous thickens towards the top.[6]
The radula of I. glauce is composed of two or three teeth in a row with curved and solid marginal teeth. All species in Pseudomelatomidae share a similar radula structure.[7]
Distribution edit
This marine species is endemic to northeastern Australia and is distributed in the marine waters between the Home Islands, particularly Perry Island, and the state of Queensland.
I. glauce has been found at benthic depths, the lowest ecological zone in the ocean, thus considered macrobenthos.[3]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ a b Inquisitor glauce (Dall, 1918). Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 4 April 2010.
- ^ a b c "Molluscabase - Pleurotoma (Drillia) ventricosa E. A. Smith, 1888". www.molluscabase.org. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Inquisitor glauce". www.sealifebase.ca. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
- ^ "Trochophore - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics". www.sciencedirect.com. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
- ^ Muséum national d'histoire naturelle (France); naturelle (France), Muséum national d'histoire (1804). Annales du Muséum d'histoire naturelle. Vol. t.3 (1804). Paris: G. Dufour, et Ed. d'Ocagne.
- ^ a b The Annals and magazine of natural history; zoology, botany, and geology. Vol. ser.6:v.2=no.7-12 (1888). London: Taylor and Francis, Ltd. 1888.
- ^ Kantor, Yuir I.; Taylor, John D. (October 2000). "Formation of marginal radular teeth in Conoidea (Neogastropoda) and the evolution of the hypodermic envenomation mechanism". Journal of Zoology. 252 (2): 251–262. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.2000.tb00620.x. ISSN 0952-8369.
- Smith, E.A. 1888. Diagnoses of new species of Pleurotomidae in the British Museum. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 6 2: 300-317
- Hedley, C. 1908. Studies on Australian Mollusca. Part 10. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 33: 456-489
- W.H. Dall (1918) Notes on the nomenclature of the mollusks of the family Turritidae; Proceedings of The United States National Museum v. 54 (1918)
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. - Hedley, C. 1922. A revision of the Australian Turridae. Records of the Australian Museum 13(6): 213-359, pls 42-56 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- Wells, F.E. 1994. A revision of the Recent Australian species of the turrid genera Inquisitor and Ptychobela. Journal of the Malacological Society of Australasia 15: 71-102
External links edit
- Tucker, J.K. (2004). "Catalog of recent and fossil turrids (Mollusca: Gastropoda)" (PDF). Zootaxa. 682: 1–1295. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.682.1.1.
- "Inquisitor glauce".