Turris garnonsii ( Reeve, 1843 )

Kilburn, Richard N., Fedosov, Alexander E. & Olivera, Baldomero M., 2012, Revision of the genus Turris Batsch, 1789 (Gastropoda: Conoidea: Turridae) with the description of six new species, Zootaxa 3244 (1), pp. 1-58 : 25

Turris garnonsii ( Reeve, 1843)

Plate 14 , figs A–I

Pleurotoma garnonsii Reeve, 1843 : pl. 1, sp. 4; Weinkauff 1875: 12, pl. 2, figs 1–2 (not 3–4). Type loc.: Zebu [= Cebu] Is., Philippines [erroneous, neotype loc. here designated: Zanzibar].

Turris garnonsii ; Powell 1964: 329 (references), pl. 181, figs 7–8 [not 18, see next], pl. 254; Kilburn 1983: 553; Drivas & Jay 1986: 28, textfig. left-hand shell only.

Pleurotoma babilonia [sic] var.; Kiener 1839: 4, pl. 1, fig. 2.

DESCRIPTION: Shell resembling Turris babylonia (restricted sense) in shape (b/l 0.24–0.31, a/l 0.38–0.46), but with dense, somewhat lamellar collabral riblets overall (instead of weak threads), giving the surface a duller, rougher appearance, and less angulate whorls; spiral cords more angulate than in babylonia . Subsutural cord low, feeble to distinct, with a median ridge and a weaker one on either side; sulcus shallow and ill-defined, with three spiral threads. Sinus cord low, flat, usually shallowly bifid; base of each spire whorl with two narrow ridges, of equal strength; base of last whorl with 16–20 ridges. First teleoconch whorl with four spiral ridges, the 2nd from base strongest.

Vividly patterned, ivory-white with large brown spots (often square or rectangular) below suture and a more or less broken band of this colour around upper part of base of last whorl, spiral cords and main ridges with brown dots.

Protoconch bluntly conical of 2.5 whorls, last with fine, opisthocline axial riblets and a thin spiral thread at suture, white, width ca 0.84 mm.

Attains 74 mm ( Powell, 1964).

DISTRIBUTION: Indian Ocean, from Zululand and East Africa to the Red Sea ( Sharabati, 1984), east to the Andaman and Réunion Islands, in clean or muddy sand, often among rocks or coral, intertidal to 80 m.

TYPES: Holotype originally in the Stainforth collection, which was dispersed by sale. Although Powell (1964: fig. 1) illustrated a specimen in the NHMUK as the supposed holotype, this cannot now be located (pers. comm. Kathie Way) and is presumed to be lost . Moreover Powell’s photograph of it is not easy to reconcile with even Reeve’s crude illustrations (pl. 14, fig. A) in shape.

Neotype designation: Since Weinkauff (1875), Turris garnonsii has been confused with a different species (see Turris guidopoppei below) from the Philippines. That species is moderately abundant in the vicinity of Cebu (the spurious type locality of Pleurotoma garnonsii , a species unfamiliar to modern Philippine collectors). In view of this confusion, we designate a neotype from the locality from which T. garnonsii specimens are most commonly represented, namely Zanzibar (also a known source of dealer’s specimens in the 19th century). The neotype (pl. 14, figs B–C) from Fumba , Zanzibar, living on “ weedy sandflats ”, and collected by R. C. Wood, has been deposited in the NHMUK 20110294 .

OTHER MATERIAL EXAMINED: ANDAMAN ISLANDS: Port Blair area ( NMSA F4925: Mrs and Miss E. M. Man) . TANZANIA: W. of Stone Town, Zanzibar, 30–60 ft [9–19 m] ( NMSA L7993: H. Conley) . MAURITIUS ( NMSA L8200): off Ile aux Bénitiers, lagoon, 1.5 m at LST, fine sand between coral heads ( NMSA K8807: R. K., D. Herbert) . RÉUNION IS.: 20°52’S, 55°38’E, 110 m and 21°00’S, 55°15’E, 58–70 m ( MNHN, juvs) . NORTHERN MOZAMBIQUE: Quirimba Island, S.W. sandflats, at LST ( NMSA J8623: RK) ; S.W. Conducia Bay, muddy sand with rocks, LST ( NMSA H2459: K. Grosch) ; Conducia Bay, sandy area with rocks, above Thalassodendron bed, about 0.3 m above LST ( NMSA H2458: K. Grosch) ; Quissimajul Bay and F. Velosa, Nacala Bay, 2–3 m, mud, sand, algae, BO colln, ex C.P. Fernandes. MADAGASCAR: BO colln, ex F. Lorenz .

Figures

PLATE 14. Turris garnonsii (Reeve, 1843): A—Type figure of Pleurotoma garnonsii, after Reeve, 1843: pl. 1, figs 4a-b, Zebu [Cebu] Is., Philippines [erroneous]; B, C—Neotype of Pleurotoma garnonsii, Fumba, Zanzibar, on weedy sandflats, NHMUK 20110294, 67.5 x 17.1 mm; D, E—Zanzibar, Tanzania, NMSA, 67.6 x 16.6 mm; F, G—Madagascar, BO colln, 65.9 x 17.5 mm; H, I—Nacala Bay, Northern Mozambique, 2–3 m, BO colln, 59.2 x 15.7 mm.