Stellaria testigera, common name finger carrier shell, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier shells.[1]
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| A view of a fossil shell of Stellaria testigera | |
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| Species: | S. testigera
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| Stellaria testigera (Bronn, 1831)
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Subspecies
edit- Stellaria testigera profunda Ponder, 1983
- Stellaria testigera digitata Martens, 1878
Distribution
editStellaria testigera profunda is present in the Gulf of Aden and in North East Africa,[2] while Stellaria testigera digitata can be found in Senegal and Western Africa.[3]
Description
editShells of Stellaria testigera profunda can reach a size of 45–80 millimetres (1.8–3.1 in),[2] while in Stellaria testigera digitata they can reach 50–75 millimetres (2.0–3.0 in).[3] These shells are characterized by the expanded peripherical flange, the presence of digitations and the smooth dorsal surface.[4][5]
Fossil record
editFossils of Stellaria testigera are found in marine strata from the Miocene to Pliocene (age range: from 20.43 to 3.6 million years ago.). Fossils are known from Italy, Denmark and Slovakia.[6] These mollusks lived in the Mediterranean and spread to the Atlantic Africa and the Gulf of Aden.[4][7]
References
edit- ^ a b Stellaria testigera (Bronn, 1831). WoRMS (2010). Stellaria testigera (Bronn, 1831). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=468050 on 9 July 2010 .
- ^ a b S. t. profunda at Gastropods
- ^ a b S.t. digitata at Gastropods
- ^ a b Sven N. Nielsen, T. J. DeVries Tertiary Xenophoridae (Gastropoda) of western South America The Nautilus. - Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum - American Malacologists, Inc. - Delaware Museum of Natural History. v.116:no.1-3 (2002) Page 75
- ^ Stromboidea
- ^ Paleobiology Database
- ^ Storia della specie Stellaria testigera
- Kreipl K. & Alf A. (1999). Recent Xenophoridae. Conchbooks, Hackenheim > Germany. 148pp.