Aesopus obesus

Aesopus obesus
	Shell of Aesopus obesus (species at the Natural History Museum of Rotterdam)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Neogastropoda
Family:	Columbellidae
Genus:	Aesopus
Species:	A. obesus
Binomial name
	Aesopus obesus; (Hinds, 1844)
Synonyms
	Aesopus metcalfei (Reeve, 1860); Columbella acus Reeve, 1859; Columbella lumbricus Reeve, 1859; Terebra metcalfei Reeve, 1860; Terebra obesa Hinds, 1844;

Aesopus obesus, common name the fat dovesnail, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Columbellidae, the dove snails.^[1]

Description

The size of an adult shell varies between 5 mm and 14 mm.

(Original description in Latin) The smotth shell is obese and awl-shaped. It is white, adorned with pale longitudinal brown spots. It features a few subrounded whorls, with the body whorl biseriately spotted. The spire is obsoletely folded. The aperture is oblong, and the columella is truncated. ^[2]

(Described as Columbella acus) The shell is narrowly elongated. It features minutely ribbed longitudinal patterns towards the apex. Its color is yellowish, irregularly streaked with orange-brown. The whorls are rather flattened. The aperture is very small, and the columella is slightly excavated and truncated. The outer lip is simple and scarcely denticulated within. ^[3]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Caribbean Sea and the Lesser Antilles; in the Pacific Ocean from Colombia to Argentina in the Atlantic Ocean.

References

^ ^a ^b Aesopus obesus (Hinds, 1844). Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 23 October 2011.
^ Hinds, R. B. (1844). Descriptions of new shells, collected during the voyage of the Sulphur, and in Mr. Cuming's late visit to the Philippines. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. (1844) 11: 149–168. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^ Reeve, L. A. (1858–1859). Monograph of the Genus Columbella. In: Conchologia Iconica, or, illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals, vol. 11, pl. 1-37 and unpaginated text. L. Reeve & Co., London. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

Monsecour K. & Monsecour D. (2007) The Aesopus (Lavesopus) spiculus species complex in the tropical Indo-Pacific (Mollusca, Caenogastropoda, Columbellidae). Visaya 2(2): 57–61. [November 2007]
Monsecour K. (2010). Checklist of Columbellidae

External links

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[WoRMS-1] Aesopus obesus (Hinds, 1844). Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 23 October 2011.

[2] Hinds, R. B. (1844). Descriptions of new shells, collected during the voyage of the Sulphur, and in Mr. Cuming's late visit to the Philippines. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. (1844) 11: 149–168. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

[3] Reeve, L. A. (1858–1859). Monograph of the Genus Columbella. In: Conchologia Iconica, or, illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals, vol. 11, pl. 1-37 and unpaginated text. L. Reeve & Co., London. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

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