The C. Chen Collection: “Kogkhulion”

“Kogkhulion” (Greek: “Conch”) is a photographic reference to world molluscs using specimens from the C. Chen Collection; continually updated. Mouse-hover over an image will display the scientific name, clicking/tapping reveals the full image with a detailed species account. For a searchable version, click here.

Austroharpa exquisita (Iredale, 1931)<br />
HARPIDAE<br />
-120~200 m, Trawled, Off Cape Moreton, Queensland, Australia, 18.6 mm <br />
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A regular, cancellate sculpture formed by crossing low axial and spiral ribs characterises the "Exquisite Harp", a small harpid endemic to Australia where it ranges from Queensland to Victoria and Tasmania. A rather rare species inhabiting sand and rubble bottom of moderate depths between around 30~250 m deep, its diet is not specifically known but is likely a carnivorous and predatory snail feeding on small crustaceans like other harpids. Base colour ranges from light pink to orange, overlaid with patches of reddish brown which is distributed regularly on the subsutural ramp and unevenly on other parts of the body whorl. Specimens can vary considerably in the length to width ratio as well as the strength of sculpture, though the ribs are never sharply raised. Most specimens have been collected as empty shells faded in colouration, live-taken specimens remain scarce. Typical shell length around 20 mm, very large specimens may reach 30 mm; specimens from the southern populations appear to be generally larger than those from the northern populations. Though it was confused with Austroharpa loisae Rehder, 1973 from western and southern Australia for some years, A. loisae always exhibits sharply raised axial varices and the two species are actually easily separable.

Morum lorenzi Monsecour, 2011<br />
HARPIDAE<br />
Dived in coral rubble, Saint Brandon, Mauritius, Leg. Felix Lorenz, 21.5 mm <br />
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The "Lorenz's Morum" is a small harpid only known from the remote Saint Brandon archipelago (Cargados Carajos Shoals), over 400 kms northeast of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. This secluded habitat prevented its discovery for a long time, until it was finally collected during a diving expedition led by Dr Felix Lorenz of Germany, best known for his extensive works on cowries and allied-cowries, the namesake of this species. For now it remains a very rarely seen species only known from a handful of specimens, most of which are empty shells found in coral rubble and very few live specimens have been collected. Inhabiting sandy bottoms of shallow waters down to about -30 m, the diet is unknown but it is most likely a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on small crustaceans. <br />
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The shell colour ranges from white to light yellow; the dorsal face of the outer lip (the terminal varix) carry two large brown blotches as well as numerous brown speckles, though these are often no longer evident on dead-collected shells. In fresh specimens the shell is overlaid by a thin, brittle calcified layer with a dullish surface, this is apparently a secondary secretion and has been termed the 'intracalyx'. Though overall the shell form is little-varied, the development and number of round nodules on the shell differs among individuals. The head-foot of a live specimen was diffused with white and pink, peppered with brown specks. Typical shell length around 20 mm, very large specimens can exceed 25 mm.

Harpa gracilis Broderip & Sowerby I, 1829<br />
HARPIDAE<br />
Dived in shallow water, Apataki Atoll, Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia, 23.4 mm <br />
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A small shell with a whitish protoconch and a complete lack of dark blotches on the parietal shield makes the "Polynesian Harp" distinctive from all other described Harpa species. Originally described from a single specimen collected from the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia, this is also the locality where most specimens have been collected since the description. Its distribution, however, is much wider and ranges from Guam to Marshall Islands to various islands in the French Polynesia and there are even a couple of records from the Clipperton Island, an uninhabited atoll administered by France in the eastern Pacific over 1000 kms southwest off Mexico. It inhabits sandy bottoms of shallow waters down to about 30 m deep and is a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on small crustaceans. A rare species, vast majority of specimens are collected on the beach or dead in coral rubble and typically with holes, live-taken specimens are very scarce. The colouration typically ranges from light chestnut brown to purplish brown. <br />
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With a typical shell length around 25 mm and very large specimens exceeding 40 mm, it is the smallest extant species of genus Harpa. Populations in different parts of its range appear to vary in size, for example specimens from the Tuamotu Archipelago are typically only around 20 mm but those from Guam average around 30 mm. It is sometimes confused with small specimens of the abundant and widely-distributed Harpa amouretta Röding, 1798, but H. amouretta has a purplish protoconch and two to three dark parietal blotches and the two species are actually easily distinguished. Harpa gracilis also has a thinner shell and lacks distinct spines on the shoulder which H. amouretta typically carry.

Morum bruuni (Powell, 1958)<br />
HARPIDAE<br />
-200~300 m, Dredged, Near Raoul Island, Kermadec Islands, New Zealand, 1985, 32.8 mm <br />
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Characterised by a light peach-brown shell with a dark brown patch on the inner lip and strong axial ribs crossed only by indistinct spiral cords, the "Bruun's Morum" is a handsome harpid native to the southern Pacific. Typically, the dorsum carries four darker spiral bands and some bright yellow flushes; the outer lip carries numerous dark brown dots on the dorsal surface. Originally described from a single specimen dredged from 50-85 m deep off Raoul Island of Kermadec Islands, New Zealand, it was later also discovered from New Caledonia and off New South Wales, Australia. An extremely rare and sought-after species, majority of specimens have been collected from seamounts of New Caledonia. <br />
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Inhabiting sand and rubble bottoms of moderate depths around 50~250 m deep, though the diet of this species is not known it probably feeds on small crustaceans like other harpids. The digestive system is reduced and it lacks a radula, suggesting it most likely first liquify the prey's tissue and then feed suctorially on the juice as is known for other harpids. Typical shell length around 30 mm, very large specimens may exceed 40 mm. <br />
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The specific epithet was dedicated to Dr Anton F. Bruun, chief scientist of the Galathea Expedition that collected the holotype. It was first placed in the genus Oniscidia and the Australian population was first described as Pulchroniscia delecta Garrard, 1961 with the genus Pulchroniscia being newly established for it at the time of Garrard's description. Today, both Oniscidia and Pulchroniscia are considered to be junior synonyms of Morum, and P. delecta a synonym of M. bruuni.

Austroharpa loisae Rehder, 1973<br />
HARPIDAE<br />
-35 m, Dived on sandy reef at night, Frenchmans Bay, Western Australia, Australia, 30.0 mm <br />
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The "Lois' Harp" is spectacular harpid characterised by a pinkish shell patterned with red blotches and ornamented with a regular cancellate sculpture where sharply raised, delicate, lamellate axial varices cross with rather strong spiral ridges. Like other Austroharpa species it is endemic to Australia, where it ranges between Esperance and Kalbarri in Western Australia. Inhabiting sandy bottoms of moderate depths between about 30-200 m deep, it is a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on small crustaceans. A rather rare and highly sought-after species, it is very difficult to find a specimen in good condition due to the varices being extremely fragile. Though a little-varied species in terms of shell form and sculpture, the base colouration can range from whitish to pinkish to rarely yellowish, and the coverage of reddish blotches vary greatly among specimens. Typical shell length around 35 mm, a fragment of a large shell collected off Rottnest Island indicate that the largest specimens can exceed 45 mm. <br />
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Harald A. Rehder (1907-1996), an American conchologist at the Smithsonian Institute, described the species in 1973 as a part of his revision of Harpidae, naming it after his wife Lois Corea Rehder (1911-1988) who was also a malacologist and published on deep water molluscs from the Puerto Rico Trench. For some years before its description it has been confused with Austroharpa exquisita (Iredale, 1931), but that species lacks the sharply raised axial varices and the two species are actually easily distinguished.

Harpa goodwini Rehder, 1993<br />
HARPIDAE<br />
-125~130 m, In lobster trap, Necker Island, Leeward Islands, Hawaii, U.S.A., Leg. Robert B. Moffitt, 1996/vi, 61.9 mm <br />
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Endemic to the Hawaiian Archipelago including Midway Atoll, the "Goodwin's Harp" is a characterised by a shell vibrantly coloured with hues of pink, orange, and yellow. An extremely rare species inhabiting moderately deep waters between -80~250 m, it is typically crabbed in lobster traps and very few live-taken specimens have been collected. First discovered by the conchologist and shell dealer Daniel R. Goodwin of Honolulu, Hawaii, he accumulated 13 crabbed specimens and sent them to the eminent conchologist Donald Dan for study. Dan then forwarded the specimens to the malacologist Harald A. Rehder (1907-1996) of the Smithsonian Institute, who used the material to name this species in honour of Goodwin. Although virtually nothing is known about its ecology, it is presumably a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on crustaceans and inhabit sandy bottoms like other Harpa species. Normally this species exhibits three parietal blotches on the ventral side of the shell, though the small blotch at the anterior is sometimes completely obscured by nacreous overglaze. Typical shell length around 65 mm, very large specimens can exceed 75 mm. <br />
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It is most similar to the western Pacific congener Harpa kajiyamai Habe, 1970 which ranges between Japan and Philippines, and some authors have even considered H. goodwini to be a form or subspecies of H. kajiyamai. The two species are, however, distinguishable from shell morphology in that: 1) H. goodwini has a much heavier, more stout shell than H. kajiyamai; 2) H. goodwini typically has a broader shell with thicker and more angulated varices than H. kajiyamai; 3) In the spire of H. goodwini the nacreous overglaze is less developed, it just reaches the spines but never extends across the subsutural plateau, whereas in H. kajiyamai the overglaze frequently reaches across the subsutural plateau. The two species are certainly closely related, however, as they share a relatively deep water habitat compared to other Harpa species and exhibit similarities in shell colouration; but fully resolving the true relationship between them requires future studies.

Babelomurex kuroharai (Habe, 1970)<br />
MURICIDAE<br />
Trawled, Tosa Bay, Off Kochi Prefecture, Japan, Early 1970s, 22.2 mm <br />
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A highly unusual, disjunct shell whose coiling increasingly loosens with growth makes the "Kurohara's Latiaxis" an unmistakable species among the subfamily Coralliophilinae. The first two specimens known (later holotype and paratype) were discovered in Tosa Bay, Japan by the eminent Japanese painter and conchologist Kazuo Kurohara (1928-) who examined molluscs collected as by-catches by coral fishing boats. Realising that the specimens were unlike any described coralliophilines, Kurohara forwarded the specimens to the malacologist Tadashige Habe (1916-2001) who described the species in honour of Kurohara. At first Habe thought the specimens might represent a freak, disjunct form of another species, but the identical morphology of the two specimens convinced him to describe it as a new species. The few specimens found after the description were also nearly identical to the types, suggesting that this is likely indeed a distinctive species. Habe initially placed it in a new genus named Tarantellaxis, alluding the 'dancing' shell form to the southern Italian folk dance Tarantella. Today, the disjunct whorl is not widely considered to be a trait warranting genus-level distinction and Tarantellaxis is generally treated as a junior synonym of Babelomurex. <br />
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An exceedingly rare species, perhaps not more than a couple dozens of specimens are known. This rarity combined with its unique morphology makes it one of the 'holy grails' for collectors of latiaxis or 'coral shells'. Though the distribution supposedly extends from Tosa Bay southwards to South China Sea, virtually all specimens with reliable data have come from southern Japan and its presence outside Japanese waters remains dubious. Typical shell length around 20 mm, very large specimens can exceed 25 mm. The known specimens are all very similar in shell morphology, though there are slight variations in the strength of secondary spines on the peripheral spines as well as the colouration, which can range from all white to a light reddish brown. There is always only a single row of delicate peripheral spines, the whorls lack significant sculpture otherwise. The only species that it can be confused with is Babelomurex juliae (Clench & Aguayo, 1939), an Atlantic species ranging from Caribbean Sea to Brazil and the only other coralliophiline that exhibits disjunct coiling. The two species are easily differentiated, however, as B. juliae has much more robust peripheral spines that develop into varices, and the coiling is also less loose compared to B. kuroharai.

Buccinum hydrophanum Hancock, 1846<br />
BUCCINIDAE<br />
-900 m, Dredged, WNW off Muckle Flugga (61°07'N, 02°53'W), Faroer-Shetland Channel, Scotland, U.K., 2018/ix, 50.1 mm <br />
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With a very thin shell characterised by an extensive, glossy, purplish-bronze perietal overglaze, the "Hydrophane Whelk" is an arctic cold-water buccinid with a wide range in the subarctic Atlantic towards the Arctic Ocean. Originally described from Davis Strait between Greenland and Nunavut, Canada, it is found from the northern Atlantic coast of Canada to Shetland Islands, United Kingdom and northwards, to about 80°N. A carnivorous and predatory gastropod, it inhabits soft bottoms of moderate to deep waters between -100~1200 m, and apparently more typically seen in the deeper part of the range around -700~1200 m. Although a locally common species in its natural habitat, the arctic range and the deep habitat means it is challenging to collect and as a result it is a very rarely seen species in collections. The thin, fragile nature of the shell means most individuals become badly damaged during sampling, making intact specimens scarce. <br />
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The name 'hydrophanum' refers to hydrophane opal, a type of opal that readily absorbs water due to its porous nature and exhibits changes in colour and transparency according to the water content. In the description paper, the British naturalist Albany Hancock (1806-1873) remarked that the most striking feature of the species is that the shell's chalky, opaque, porous outer layer quickly becomes semi-transparent when submerged in water to reveal the deep purplish-bronze colour of the layer beneath, a feature similar to hydrophane opals. Typical shell length around 50 mm, very large specimens can exceed 70 mm. Though a little-varied species, the shell height to width ratio varies slightly among individuals and the strength of spiral cords also vary, though usually stronger in younger individuals.

Spondylus fauroti Jousseaume, 1888<br />
SPONDYLIDAE<br />
Dived in underwater cave, Northern Bohol Island, Central Visayas, Philippines, 82.4 mm <br />
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The "Faurot's Thorny Oyster" is an unusual spondylid characterised by a shell with deep orange to reddish purple colouration and spine development typically biased to one side of each valve. Living a sessile life attached to hard substrates such as corals or rocks, it is usually attached only by the umbo, resulting in the right valve becoming strongly concave and protruding from the substrate as it grows. The earlier shell carry numerous short spinelets that do not project into true spines; sparse, spatulate true spines only start to appear later, with the longest spines usually appearing near the shell edge. As with most Spondylus species the shell shape is variable and influenced by the substrate, individuals also differ significantly in spine development with some almost completely lacking in true spines. An uncommon filter-feeding bivalve, it occurs on hard substrates, sometimes in underwater caves, in shallow to moderate depths approximately between 10~50 m deep. Typical shell length around 70 mm, very large specimens may exceed 110 mm. <br />
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Originally described from Djibouti using several disarticulated valves collected by the French scientist Dr. Lionel Faurot (1853-1934), the species' namesake. Faurot collected mostly left valves, only one right valve was available to Dr. Félix Pierre Jousseaume (1835-1921) who studied molluscan specimens collected by Faurot and named many new species including this one. It appears to have a wide distribution across the Indo-West Pacific ranging from Red Sea to Philippines to northern Australia to even Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, but whether or not these morphologically similar populations all truly represent one species is an unsettled question. A well-known synonym is Spondylus smytheae Lamprell, 1998. The most similar described species is Spondylus morrisoni Damarco, 2015, recently described from Indonesia and later also found in the Philippines. Generally the two species are easy to distinguish as S. morrisoni usualy has very dark brown to black spines rather than reddish spines in S. fauroti, and the shells of S. morrisoni are mostly orange in colouration compared to mostly reddish purple in S. fauroti. There are supposedly other, more robust, differences in several aspects of the shell morphology such as the periauricolar ridges (much thicker in S. fauroti) and auricular crenulations (7-12 in S. morrisoni and 15-18 in S. fauroti) that can be used to distinguish the two species in more difficult cases.

Cymbiola vespertilio (Linnaeus, 1758)<br />
VOLUTIDAE<br />
-5~10 m, From fishing net, Off Banggai Island, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, 111.7 mm <br />
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Perhaps the most widely-recognised volutid of all, the "Bat Volute" is an abundant species widely distributed in the western Pacific where it ranges from Taiwan to the Philippines to Indonesia to northern Australia. A canivorous and predatory snail feeding mostly on other molluscs, it dwells in shallow sandy bottoms from low intertidal zone down to about 30 m deep, often in seagrass beds. <br />
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It is an extremely variable species in terms of shell morphology, colouration, and pattern. The shell can be narrow and almost entirely lacking in shoulder spines or very wide with thick, well-developed shoulder spines; pure white to red to dark brown; and from carrying numerous lightning-like axial zigzags forming tent-like patterns combined with wide colour bands, to lacking patterns entirely. The heavily ribbed, bulbous protoconch always remains consistent, however, and provides a reliable way to distinguish this species from other species in the genus Cymbiola. The foot is dark brown in colouration and usually carry numerous yellow dots or streaks that vary greatly among individuals. The head and cephalic tentacles have the same colour sheme but is often more heavily patterned than the foot. Typical shell length around 80 mm, extremely large specimens may exceed even 160 mm. <br />
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Recently, a population with reddish shells typically displaying particularly attractive fine tent-like patterns and dark bands was found around Banggai Islands in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia (shown) and given the subspecies name C. v. peterstimpsoni Cossignani & Allary, 2022. Considering the extreme variation displayed by this species, however, even this population falls within the known variability and this subspecies name is unlikely to represent an evolutionary lineage truly divergent from the nominal subspecies, instead it is mostly likely a regional form. In fact, specimens from this locality themselves exhibit a high level of variation that intergrades with specimens known from other parts of Indonesia as well as the Philippines. Future research, particularly using molecular methods, will be helpful in shedding light to the true relationship between this and other populations of the species.

Cassis patamakanthini Parth, 2000<br />
CASSIDAE<br />
-80~100 m, From lobster pot, Northern Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia, Australia, 1974, 33.6 mm <br />
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The "Patamakanthin's Helmet" is a small cassid best known for its vibrant and variable shell colouration that can range from milky white to yellow to pink to red. An endemic species of Western Australia, the first specimens were collected as early as the 1970s but it remained unrecognised and undescribed for more than two decades until finally receiving a name in 2000. It inhabits soft sandy bottoms of moderately deep waters around -75~150 m and is nocturnal, though its diet is not specifically known it is almost certainly a carnivorous and predatory gastropod specialising on echinoderms like other Cassis species. A very rare species that used to be known from just a handful of specimens mostly serendipitously collected from lobster traps, more recently some specimens have surfaced through collecting efforts using commercial remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) in expeditions by shell enthusiasts and dealers mainly targeting cypraeids in the genus Zoila. <br />
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With an average shell length around only 25 mm and the largest specimens approaching 35 mm, it is among the smallest species in the genus Cassis whose larger members can exceed 400 mm in shell length. Shells of smaller individuals typically carry darker colouration than the larger ones, which are usually pastel-hued. In addition to the colouration, specimens also vary in the development of shell sculpture, especially with regards to the strength of the nodules. It was named in honour of Somnuek Patamakanthin, a renowned thai conchologist and shell dealer based in Rawai, Phuket Island, Thailand who was among the first to recognise this species as undescribed. He is also known as the founder of the Phuket Sea Shell Museum — today the family's museum and shell dealer business is mostly run by his second son, Somwang Jom Patamakanthin, also well-recognised as a highly active and prominent figure in conchology.

Melo aethiopicus (Linnaeus, 1758)<br />
VOLUTIDAE<br />
By local fisherman, Banggai Island, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, 351.2 mm <br />
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With an inflated shell ornamented by regular, short, open shoulder spines, the "Crowned Baler" is a very large volutid native to the southwestern Pacific, ranging between Malaysia to Papua New Guinea with most specimens originating from Indonesia. The most striking character that makes it stand out among all Melo species is the extensive flaring of the the outer lip to cover the spire in adults, although the extent of this vary considerably among individuals and only in some gerontic specimens it is so extreme that from the aperture view the lip completely conceals the spire (shown). Another remarkable feature is that the aperture often carrys strong colouration ranging from yellow to very dark orange, though again the colouration vary among specimens; shells with strong, dark aperture colour are known informally as "sunrise baler" and are highly sought after. <br />
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The shell dorsum is typically a rather dark reddish brown and in young specimens alternating broad spiral bands of lighter and darker brown are often evident. A carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on other invertebrate animals, it inhabits soft bottoms of shallow waters from low intertidal down to about 50 m deep. Though a locally common species, finding specimens with desirable features such as strongly flared lip or "sunrise" aperture is no easy task. Typical shell length around 200 mm, extremely large specimens may reach 400 mm. <br />
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It is often confused with Melo broderipii (Gray, 1833), a congener best known from the Philippines, but the two can be distinguished by the following features: 1) M. broderipii typically carry dark brown axial patterns and speckles, especially when young, which is completely lacking in M. aethiopicus; 2) M. broderipii has a much more inflated shell compared to M. aethiopicus of a similar size; 3) The dorsum colour of M. broderipii is much lighter than that of M. aethiopicus; and 4) M. broderipii never develops the strongly flared lip often seen in mature shells of M. aethiopicus.

Trigonostoma scalare (Gmelin, 1791) <br />
CANCELLARIIDAE<br />
-150~160 m, Off Santander, Cebu, Central Visayas, Philippines, 1999/xi, 38.9 mm <br />
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The "Triangular Nutmeg" is a bizarre cancellariid characterised by staircase-like shell morphology with a very flat subsutural ramp. Once rare and known under the names Trigonostoma trigonostoma Lamarck, 1822 and T. pellucida (Perry, 1811), today it is moderate common and these two names are considered junior synonyms of T. scalare. Inhabiting shallow to moderate depths between -10~100 m, it ranges from Philippines to Sri Lanka to northern Australia in the Indo-West Pacific and most specimens are taken by tangle nets in the Philippines. Although its feeding ecology is not known, being a cancellariid it is probably a suctorial feeder living off the body fluids of other animals or a predator of eggs. The overall shell form and sculpture remain little-varied among individuals, but the height-to-width ratio exhibit considerable variation. Some specimens have clearly defined varices on the shell that indicate periods of rest in shell growth. Typical shell length around 30 mm, very large specimens can reach 45 mm. It is the type species of the genus Trigonostoma Blainville, 1827, which used to be known as Trigona Perry, 1811 until it turned out to be a junior homonym of the hymnopteran insect genus Trigona Jurine, 1807.

Latiaxis mawae (Gray, 1833)<br />
MURICIDAE<br />
-100~150 m, Trawled, Aliguay Island, Mindanao, Philippines, 51.5 mm <br />
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Characterised by an elegant shell with detached adult body whorl, the "Mawe's Latiaxis" is one of the most well-known coralliphiline muricids. Very widely distributed throughout the Indo-West Pacific ranging from Japan to Philippines to Queensland, Australia to South Africa, it lives in a relatively wide bathymetric range between about -40~200 m and like other coralliophilines it feeds on the body fluid of cnidarians, particularly corals. A common species typically taken as trawl by-catch or by tangle nets, most specimens have badly damaged shell and intact specimens remain uncommon. It is very variable in shell form, especially in terms of the extend of whorl detachment, spine length, and size of fasciole -- the shell colour also differ widely among individuals from white to yellow to dark brown. Some of this appears to be related to the depth and locality, for example deep water specimens from the Philippines (shown) tend to have more delicate shells with longer spines and more colourful shells than those from Japan which are typically white and thick-shelled; there are intergrades, however. The Indian Ocean populations, best known from South Africa and Mozambique, have been known under the name Latiaxis kylix Barnard, 1959 due to the geographic distance, but this is now considered to be a junior synonym of L. mawae. Typical shell length around 50 mm, very large specimens may approach 70 mm. It was named in honour of the British mineralogist and conchologist John Mawe (1764-1829).

Bolma andersoni (Smith, 1902)<br />
TURBINIDAE<br />
-50 m, Dived, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, 89.3 mm <br />
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A turbinid endemic to South Africa, the "Anderson's Star" is a species known for its vivid and variable shell colouration. The colouration ranges from dark brown to pastel red to bright yellow, with some specimens exhibiting an array of colours on different parts of the shell. Ranging between northern KwaZulu-Natal Province and Eastern Cape Province off East London, it inhabits moderately shallow waters around 20~70 m deep and likely feeds on algae and detritus. The holotype was taken from a fish's stomach and was in the collection of the conchologist Alexander Anderson (1844-1938), the species' namesake, but its whereabouts is not currently known. <br />
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Though used to be a rare species, today it is only uncommon with a steady supply available -- but finding a large, colourful specimen in good condition is still a challenge as most specimens suffer from heavy erosion and encrustation. Typical shell length around 75 mm, very large specimens can approach 110 mm. In addition to shell colour, the shell sculpture is also rather variable, especially in terms of spine development and the strength of 'wavy' sculpture on the base. The earlier whorls tend to have longer spines than the later ones. The operculum is white and smooth, lacking in sculpture, and sometimes carry patches of translucent areas.

Nicaisolopha tridacnaeformis (Cox, 1927) <br />
OSTREIDAE<br />
-120 m, Trawled on soft silty sand bottom, Off Cape Cleveland, Queensland, Australia, by Eddie Brown, 1995, 42.1 mm <br />
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The "Poppe's Oyster" is an unusual ostreid characterised by very fragile, translucent valves exhibiting zig-zagged margins and extensively ornamented with foliaceous, concentric, sharply raised ribs. It is better known under the name Lopha poppei Bozzetti, 1996, which was described based on live-taken specimens collected off Queensland, Australia and also found in the nearby New Caledonia. This name was later deemed to be a junior synonym of Ostrea tridacnaeformis Cox, 1927 described based on fossils between Pliocene and Pleistocene from Zanzibar, Tanzania. Although Tanzania is very far from Australia, apparently conspecific fossils are also known from Iran and Pakistan and a valve of a recent specimen has been collected from Oman. Like majority of oysters, this species also exhibit some variations in shell morphology in each locality and the Indian Ocean specimens therefore appear to be morphologically indistinguishable from the Pacific ones, leading to their synonymisation. Future studies of both anatomical and molecular data are, however, warranted to test the alternative hypothesis that there may be two species with similar shell morphology. <br />
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Almost certainly a filter-feeding bivalve, it seems to occur across a considerable bathymetric range between about -10~150 m deep and appears to be quite rare. Typical shell length around 40 mm, very large specimens can exceed 60 mm. Initially authors placed it in genus Lopha due to superficial similarities with the Cockscomb Oyster Lopha cristagalli (Linnaeus, 1758), but the clearly distinct shell structure and a complete lack of chomata led to its transfer to Nicaisolopha. Currently it is the only recognised living species of Nicaisolopha, the type species of which is the Cretaceous oyster Nicaisolopha nicaisei (Coquand, 1862)†.

Taphon childsi Scali & Liverani, 2020<br />
MELONGENIDAE<br />
-1.5 m, Dived, Sur Masirah, Masirah Island, Oman, 2020/i, 57.4 mm <br />
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Numerous crisp, white, spiral ribs sharply contrasting with brown intervarical spaces characterises Taphon childsi, the second species in the melongenid genus Taphon recently separated from Taphon clavella (Reeve, 1847). The genus is currently only reliably known from Oman and although it has been noted for decades by the conchologist Donald T. Bosch (1917-2012) that there appears to be multiple forms of Taphon in Oman, they were all considered to represent variations of T. clavella. The recent resurgence of interests in seashells of Oman led to their rediscovery and also a considerable number of new specimens collected, including the finding of the distinctly patterned specimens later described as T. childsi. <br />
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To date T. childsi has been found in both continental Oman (Bar Al Hikman) and Masirah Island, most specimens collected were beached empty shells, but a number of live-taken specimens have surfaced. Apparently living in shallow waters between intertidal depths down to 10s of metres, its feeding ecology is unknown but it is most likely a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on other invertebrates. It is a rare species, with only about 5-10% of Taphon specimens collected in Oman being T. childsi (the others being T. clavella which is already uncommon). The clear separation between colouration of the ribs and interspaces, largely uninterrupted by axial patterning, distinguishes this species from T. clavella, which also has less rounded spiral ribs. Generally a little-varied species, though the intervarical spaces can vary in colour from light reddish brown to very dark chocolate brown. Typical shell length around 55 mm, very large specimens can exceed 65 mm. It was named in honour of the conchologist Andrew Childs who first noted its distinctness from T. clavella. <br />
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The morphology of genus Taphon is rather distinct from other melongenids, and thus the family placement is still uncertain, warranting future studies of radula, soft parts, and/or molecular data.

Charonia lampas (Linnaeus, 1758)<br />
CHARONIIDAE<br />
-50 m, Trawled, Nador, Morocco, 328.4 mm <br />
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The "Knobbed Triton" is a very large caenogastropod that can reach over 410 mm in shell length. Long considered to be a nearly cosmopolitan species distributed in global warm to temperate waters -- although minor differences in shell morphology seen in specimens from different parts of the world have led to a bunch of names proposed, these have been thought to be mere regional forms as they appear to intergrade at the extremes. Such variation can occur in the overall shell form, shell sculpture such as strength of nodes and varices, as well as dramatic differences in the colouration and patterning. <br />
<br />
Just a few examples of such names exmplifying its vast range are sauliae Reeve, 1844 from Japan to East China Sea, pustulata Euthyme, 1889 from South Africa, and capax Finlay, 1927 from New Zealand; while the lampas sensu stricto is restricted to the Mediterranean Sea and West Africa (shown). Nevertheless, different authors have varying opinions on if each should actually be considered as valid subspecies or even species, for example recently the Brazilian population was described as a separate species -- Charonia marylenae Petuch & Berschauer, 2020 (was long known as weisbordi Gibson-Smith, 1976 but that name is actually based on a Pliocene fossil from Venezuela). In order to resolve this issue, molecular data of different populations around the globe are much needed. <br />
<br />
Generally a common species found in shallow to moderate depths between low intertidal to about -200 m deep, it is a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on echinoderms. Some populations of the 'lampas complex' such as those from South Africa and New Zealand are somewhat rare, however. The sizes of specimens from the various localities also vary, with some rarely exceeding 30 cm; the lampas sensu stricto is one of the largest forms averaging at around 250 mm and very large specimens exceeding 400 mm. Following a recent study on the molecular phylogeny of Tonnoidea, Charoniidae has been separated from Ranellidae as its own family containing only the genus Charonia.

Tudivasum armigerum (Adams, 1856)<br />
TURBINELLIDAE<br />
Trawled, Off Swain Reefs, Queensland, Australia, 80.2 mm <br />
<br />
Ornamented with numerous spiral ribs carrying spines of various lengths, the "Armoured Tudicula" is a prickly turbinellid endemic to Queensland, Australia with a distribution range between Cape Cleveland and Moreton Bay. A carnivorous and predatory gastropod, it inhabits sandy bottoms between intertidal waters typically to about 50 m deep (though in exceptional cases it has been fished as deep as 200 m) and feeds mostly worms (polychaetes and sipunculans) but also bivalves and other invertebrates. The majority of specimens have been trawled from subtidal depths, where it is locally common. <br />
<br />
Though the shell form is little-varied, the sculpture and spine development vary dramatically among individuals. There are typically three rows of major spines, including one at the shoulder just above the suture and two on the anterior siphonal canal -- their lengths vary among individuals. Furthermore, spiral ribs carrying densely spaced minor spines can occur just anterior of the shoulder, but the number of these also differ among individuals (typically between one to three rows). The shell usually bears numerous reddish-brown axial streaks, whose density and arrangement is variable too. Typical shell length around 60 mm, extremely large specimens may reach even 100 mm. <br />
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It is often confused with the much rarer Tudivasum kurtzi (Macpherson, 1964), also endemic to Australia but with a more western distribution extending to Rowley Shoals, off Western Australia. Tudivasum kurtzi is however usually found in greater depths, at least 70 m deep and more typically between 300~500m depth. Morphologically, the two can be separated in the following aspects: 1) T. kurtzi is white in colouration as adults and lack brown axial patterns; 2) T. kurtzi has more spiral rows carrying minor spines on the shell surface, typicall over 10 (compared to typically 1-3 in T. armigerum); 3) The shoulder spines are typically longer in T. kurtzi; and 4) The protoconch is larger in T. kurtzi (average of 3.85 mm vs 3.19 mm).

Talisman scrobilator (Linnaeus, 1758)<br />
BURSIDAE<br />
-16 m, SCUBA dived, Punta Prieta, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, 2021/v, 64.3 mm <br />
<br />
The "Pitted Frog Shell" is a medium-sized bursid ranging rather widely from Mediterranean Sea to the northeastern Atlantic to West Africa. Two living subspecies are recognised from both morphological and molecular data. The nominal subspecies (shown) ranges from Mediterranean Sea to the northeastern Atlantic and typically has smooth adult whorls with dark reddish-brown 'flame-like' patterns and diminutive intervarical sculpture such as striae and nodules. Although the sculpture is still somewhat variable in this subspecies, a key feature is that fine pustules on and between spiral striae are consistently absent. Some of the best known localities for the nominal subspecies include Italy, Portugal, Azores, Canary Islands, among others. The other subspecies, T. s. coriacea (Reeve, 1844), is restricted to West Africa between Senegal and Angola; it typically has heavier intervarical sculpture in adults including strongly raised nodules and spiral striae, as well as characteristic pustules on and between the spiral striae. The nominal subspecies is larger with a typical shell length of around 50 mm and extremely large specimens can reach 95 mm; T. s. crocea is typically about 40 mm in shell length though very large specimens can reach 65 mm. <br />
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A carnivorous and predatory gastropod, it inhabits rocky shores of shallow to moderate depths between -10~100 m and feeds on other invertebrate animals such as sea stars and sea urchins. An uncommon species, vast majority of specimens are crabbed or collected as empty shells -- live-collected specimens are rare and hard to come-by, especially large-sized ones with mature lip. Previously this species has been placed in Bursa or Bufonaria, but now it is housed in the monotypic genus Talisman.

Aliger gigas (Linnaeus, 1758)<br />
STROMBIDAE<br />
-24~31 m (-80~100 ft), Trawled on sandy bottom, Cancun, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, 288.4 mm <br />
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Characterised by a large, flaring outer lip whose interior is richly coloured in pink or orange, the "Queen Conch" is a very large strombid native to the western Atlantic ranging from Bermuda to the Caribbean Sea to Brazil. A commercially important species, it is the source of conch meat which has been consumed traditionally in the West Indies islands as well as Florida, U.S.A and one of the most representative food of the region. Exploitation for meat (and as a by-product, shells for souvenir and decoration) has led to its rapid decline -- currently it is illegal to fish this species in Florida, but harvest continues in the Caribbean. In many regions the population has already been depleted or close to depletion, resulting in numerous conservation efforts across the region targeting this species. Since 1992 it has also been listed in CITES Appendix II, heavily restricting the international trade of this species. <br />
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Inhabiting sandy substrates of seagrass meadows in shallow waters from low tide down to about -40 m, it is a herbivorous gastropod feeding mostly on algae and seagrass. Though it only takes three to five years for A. gigas to reach adult stage with developed outer lip, its lifespan can even reach 20 to 30 years in deeper areas (though typically much shorter in shallower waters) during which the shell continues to thicken. Typical shell length around 230 mm, extremely large specimens may exceed even 350 mm. <br />
<br />
Although always instantly recognisable, it is a quite variable species in terms of the development of both the shoulder nodules and the outer lip. A number of different names have been given to unusual forms, such as A. gigas f. horridus Smith, 1940 which has two rows of shoulder nodules and A. gigas f. canaliculatus Burry, 1949 where the nodules are reduced to a weakly raised ridge. The colouration inside the aperture is typically pink (hence it is also known as the "Pink Conch"), but can range from cream to orange to a very dark magenta. Most shells seen for sale have holes on the aperture and smoothed lips, these are shells discarded after extracting conch meat, the hole has been punctured in order to cut the columellar muscle easily for extracting its meat. It is actually very difficult to find a specimen without holes and with natural lips. Originally described in the genus Strombus, it has been moved across some others such as Eustrombus and Lobatus before its current placement in Aliger.

The "Fortunate Calypto Clam" is here to bring some good fortune for 2022!<br />
<br />
Archivesica fortunata (Okutani, Kojima, Kawato, Seo & Fujikura, 2011)<br />
VESICOMYIDAE<br />
-1189 m, Taken by DSV SHINKAI 6500 using a scoop sampler, Off Hatsushima hydrocarbon seep (34°59.4278'N, 139°13.4994'E), Sagami Bay, Japan, 52.4 mm <br />
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The "Fortunate Calypto Clam" is a chemosymbiotic vesicomyid clam endemic to central Japan, whose discovery came as a real surprise. The first specimen recognised was serendipitously found among a large sample of vesicomyids from the Off Hatsushima seep site in Sagami Bay, Japan. Located in 1984, this seep site was the first deep-sea chemosynthetic ecosystem found in Japanese waters and is dominated by two large chemosymbiotic vesicomyid clams, Phreagena soyoae (Okutani, 1957) and P. okutanii (Kojima & Ohta, 1997), which form dense mixed colonies of over a hundred individuals per square metre. The site has been subjected to extensive biodiversity research since 1984 but for nearly three decades, nobody noticed that a third chemosymbiotic clam species inhabited the area. In addition to this fortunate finding, another piece of luck was that the DNA barcode sequence of the Sagami Bay specimen actually matched an existing sequence on the database from an unidentified vesicomyid clam collected from another seep site Off Sanriku (the northeastern part of Honshu), Japan as early as 1999. This provided more specimens for study, and finally resulting in its formal description in 2011. It was given the name 'fortunata' (i.e. fortunate) for these two 'lucky' events surrounding its discovery. This name is also apt in that it is a very rare species and finding a specimen would be truly fortunate, even if you were already in its habitat -- among hundreds of Phreagena spp. clams, you will be lucky if you can find one or two individuals of A. fortunata. <br />
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It relies on sulfur-oxidising symbiotic bacteria living inside specialised cells on its gill for energy, via chemosynthesis using hydrogen sulfide available in the seep sediment as the energy source. It is only known from the two seep sites Off Hatsushima and Off Sanriku in Japan, between 1170~1700 m deep. The shell morphology is somewhat variable among individuals and localities, with those from Off Hatsushima having thicker, slightly more rounded shells with less pronounced growth lines than those from Off Sanriku. Typical shell length around 45 mm, very large specimens can approach 70 mm. Three morphologically similar Pacific congeners including A. angulata (Dall, 1895) and A. suavis (Dall, 1913) from the Eastern Pacific and A. nanshaensis (Xu & Shen, 1991) from South China Sea are known, distinguished by subtle differences in hinge morphology. Unfortunately molecular sequences are not available from these three species, and the true relationship among them warrants future studies.

Callipara festiva (Lamarck, 1811)<br />
VOLUTIDAE<br />
East side of Masirah Island, Oman, 94.6 mm <br />
<br />
The true "Festive Volute", as it was recently revealed, is a striking volutid endemic to Oman characterised by a 'festive' colouration consisting of chocolate axial lines and irregularly distributed reddish patches. Until recently, the name was considered to comprise of a few geographically segregated forms ranging between Oman and Somalia -- with the best known one being the large, knobby form from Somalia (typical shell length around 200 mm, largest specimens can exceed 250 mm) showing strong red colouration on the spire. In the last few years, collectors in Oman rediscovered and once again brought to light the much overlooked smaller, narrower Arabian form (typical shell length around 80 mm, very large specimens may reach 135 mm) which also lacks the red-stained early whorls seen in the Somalian form. <br />
<br />
The collection of over 200 specimens in Oman led to a study published in 2020 pointing out that the Arabian form should be considered distinct from the Somalian form due to clear conchological differences, and that the holotype of Callipara festiva (housed in Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris) is in fact a specimen of the Arabian form, making the smaller Oman population the true Callipara festiva. Indeed, the holotype of C. festiva is only 71 mm in shell length (though sub-adult) and lacks a reddish spire; the collection locality was not known and Lamarck hypothesised that it probably came from South America, which is clearly incorrect. This means the Somalian form actually did not have a name, and it was described as a new species, Callipara casaana Childs, Aiken & Bail, 2020 -- this is the taxon figured and discussed in S. Peter Dance's 50 "Rare Shells" (1969) as Festilyria festiva. The same authors also named two nomenclaturally unavailable form names for the true C. festiva: f. lizzae for specimens with darker background colouration and the black-red markings (accounting for about 2% of the known specimens) and f. dobsonae for very rare specimens with even darker, brownish background colour. <br />
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There is an intermediate form between C. festiva and C. casaana, known as Callipara festiva f. deceptrix Palazzi, 1981, found around Yemen between Oman and Somalia. The shell of f. deceptrix is typically around 175 mm in length (very large specimens exceeding 220 mm) and is narrow like typical C. festiva but has the reddish spire that characterises C. casaana. The exact affinity of this form is yet unclear, and requires further investigation. The type specimen of f. deceptrix, however, is a 116 mm subadult with a spire showing very strong reddish colouration suggesting a closer affinity to C. casaana. <br />
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The true C. festiva appears to be only uncommon in Oman with numerous specimens beached after storms, but live-taken specimens remain exceedingly rare. Almost certainly a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on other invertebrates, judging from the number of beached shells it probably lives in shallow subtidal waters (unlike C. casaana which is only taken by trawl and supposedly live in deeper waters). The only species that C. festiva can be confused with, other than C. casaana, is the very rare Callipara victoriae Childs, Aiken & Bail, 2020 endemic to Masirah Island, Oman, but they are actually easy to distinguish based on the indistinct shoulder knobs and the much wider shell of C. victoriae.

Calcitrapessa leeana (Dall, 1890)<br />
MURICIDAE<br />
-200~250 m, Dredged, Nayarit, Mexico, 43.5 mm <br />
<br />
An unmistakable muricid, the characteristic trialate shell of "Lee's Murex" carries three varices per whorl, each with only a single prominent, rounded, straight spine at almost right angle to the siphonal canal. Vast majority of specimens have been collected either near Cedros Island, Baja California, Mexico or within Gulf of California; though its range supposedly extend northwards to the southernmost part of California, U.S.A.. A very rarely seen species inhabiting rather deep waters between around -150~400 m, it is a carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on invertebrate animals and living on silt and mud bottoms. There are very fine spiral striae across the whole shell surface, and there is one intravarical node between each pair of varices. Though a little-varied species, specimens do vary in the length of the varical spine which is straight in most specimens but can also be slightly recurved anteriorly. The colouration ranges from light to dark tan. In vast majority of the specimens at least one of the three varices on the body whorl is damaged, and it is very difficult to find a specimen with all three intact. Typical shell length around 50 mm, extremely large specimens can reach 85 mm. Initially described in the genus Pteropurpura, the genus Calcitrapessa was later established due to its unique shell morphology and to date it is the only species assigned to that genus.

Maurea chilena (Rehder, 1971)<br />
CALLIOSTOMATIDAE<br />
-1100 m, Trawled, Off Constitución, Talca, Maule Region, Chile, 26.7 mm <br />
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A lustrous, iridescent shell lacking strong spiral ridges anterior of the peripheral keel characterises the "Chilean Top". Though majority of the specimens have been taken from Chile where it was first discovered, its distribution range actually extends northwards all the way to Gulf of Panama. A very rarely seen species, it inhabits deep waters ranging from -200~1200 m and is primarily taken as by-catch from trawl fisheries, especially shrimp trawlers in Chile. The early whorls carry numerous strong axial ribs crossed with three spiral cords above the suture resulting in a prickly sculpture, but after about three whorls these rapidly fade and the rest of the shell becomes almost completely smooth above the suture except very fine spiral striae. The base is encircled by a raised spiral keel, and is marked by numerous strong spiral cords. The shell surface is naturally pearly with strong structural colouration, showing varying hues of blue and olive depending on the viewing angle. Typical shell length around 25 mm, very large specimens are known to exceed 35 mm. <br />
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Originally described in the genus Calliostoma, it has later been placed in Otukaia and Akoya by various authors. Recently however, it was transferred to Maurea based on the argument that its shell morphology is likely convergent with similar northern hemisphere species, and that its radular morphology is more similar to other Maurea species. Nevertheless, it is rather different in shell morphology from other Maurea species and future research will likely lead to further updates in its genus assignment.

Lyria grangei Cernohorsky, 1980<br />
VOLUTIDAE<br />
-20~25 m, Dredged, Chesterfield-Bellona Reef Complex, Coral Sea, New Caledonia, 57.1 mm <br />
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The "Grange's Lyria" is a volutid with an attractive and colourful shell endemic to the remote Chesterfield-Bellona Reef Complex, a uninhabited archipelago in Coral Sea administrated by New Caledonia. First discovered by a research expedition by the New Zealand Oceanographic Institution's R/V Tangaroa in May 1979, it is a rare species primarily due to its remote distribution and a lack of regular collecting activity there. In its natural habitat it is actually not uncommon in shallow to moderate depths between -10~50 m on sand to rubble bottoms, where it is a predator of other invertebrate animals. Almost all available specimens were collected on dedicated collecting trips to the Chesterfield Islands and Bellona Reef, and the supply is limited. Though the shell is generally little-varied, the colouration can range from golden to dark orange to reddish brown. Typical shell length around 55 mm, very large specimens can approach 75 mm. It was named in after Mr K.R. Grange, who collected the first specimens on-board R/V Tangaroa in 1979. The very broad columellar callus and the numerous close-set, crisply defined spiral striation on the entire shell surface serve to distinguish this species from other congeners.

Hemipolygona aldeynzeri (Garcia, 2001)<br />
FASCIOLARIIDAE<br />
-100~200 m, By tangle net, Tinina, Balut Island, Mindanao, Philippines, 87.3 mm <br />
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An instantly recognisable species with a shell typified by an exceptionally wide pseudoumbilicus and a strikingly developed, funnel-like siphonal fasciole, the "Al Deynzer's Latirus" is an unusual fasciolariid ranging between Philippines and Thailand. The first known specimen was reported in Hawaiian Shell News in 1974 from deep water in Andaman Sea trawled off Kantang Province, Thailand, but this publication did not name the species. The formal description had to wait until 2001, when the conchologist Emilio F. Garcia based in Lafayette, U.S.A. published the description paper in Novapex based on a shell of the same species he received from the shell dealer Al Deynzer (the species' namesake), taken by tangle net in 200 m deep off Talikud Island, Philippines. At the time only three specimens were known, with the last one being a paratype in the collection of the shell collector Peter G. Stimpson of Tennessee, U.S.A., with no collecting data but suspected to be from the Philippines also. Since then, a number of specimens have come up in tangle nets in the Philippines between 100~200 m deep, but it remains a very rare species today with only a few adult specimens collected each year. <br />
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Though little-varied in colouration and sculpture, specimens can vary in the degree of siphonal canal development. Young and subadult individuals lack the expanded anterior siphonal fasciole and appear to be very different at the first sight, although careful examination would reveal exactly the same sculpture as the typical adults. When alive the shell is covered by a layer of brownish periostracum, concealing the orange colouration. and It is persumably a carnivorous gastropod feeding on other invertebrate animals like other fasciolariids. Typical shell length around 80 mm, very large specimens may approach 100 mm. It cannot be confused with any other Hemipolygona species due to the characteristic siphonal fasciole, but it is sometimes confused in the shell trade with geronic specimens of Nodolatirus recurvirostra (Schubert & Wagner, 1829) which often also exhibit fanned siphonal fascioles. They are actually easily distinguishable as the sculpture is very different with much finer, more frequent spiral ribs overall in H. aldeynzeri. The former species also has a much smoother siphonal canal compared to that of geronic N. recurvirostra in which it is usually heavily crenulated.

Nodulotrophon coronatus (Adams & Adams, 1864)<br />
MURICIDAE<br />
-49~59 m, In whelk traps on mixed broken shells, mud, and gravel bottom, Mordvinova Bay (46°53.5'N, 143°21.9'E), Sakhalin Island, 2016/ii/09, 49.1 mm <br />
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Characterised by a club-like shell with the shoulder crowned by a series of nodulous spines, the "Dall's Trophon" is a rather rare cold-water muricid ranging from northern Hokkaido, Japan to Aleutian Islands and extending towards the Arctic through Bering Sea. Its common name originates from the much better-known junior synonym Nodulotrophon dalli (Kobelt, 1878), in honour of the American malacologist William Healey Dall (1845-1927). It was listed in many publications under that name, often in genus Trophon or Boreotrophon. A carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on bivalves and other invertebrates, it is found across a range of depths from subtidal at around 20 m deep down to about 150 m deep. The shoulder nodules have an interesting property in being semi-transparent, unlike the rest of the shell which is chalky and opaque. When alive it is covered by a layer of thin greenish to yellowish periostracum that is easily worn out and lost. Though not too variable, specimens do differ somewhat in the number of varices per whorl and spire height -- the high-spired form was described as a variety under the name altus Dall, 1902. Typical shell length around 40 mm, extremely large specimens may reach even 60 mm. It is the type species of genus Nodulotrophon Habe & Ito, 1965.

Neolepetopsis ardua Chen, Zhou, Watanabe, Zhang & Wang, 2021<br />
NEOLEPETOPSIDAE<br />
Holotype (RSIO 49001), 5.1 mm, On inactive sulfide deposit, Longqi vent field, Southwest Indian Ridge (49°38.88'E,37°46.80'S, station '49I-S011-TVG04'), 2778 m deep, taken by a video-guided grab sampler on-board R/V Xiangyanghong 10, 2018/vi/01<br />
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A neolepetopsid limpet characterised by an intricate, densely clathrate sculpture where the concentric ones being stronger than the radial ones with weak nodes being formed where the two directions intersect, Neolepetopsis ardua is known only from the surface of inactive chimneys in Longqi hydrothermal vent field at 2778 m deep on the Southwest Indian Ridge, Indian Ocean. Just over a dozen specimens of this recently described species have been collected so far, all on a single sampling event using a video-guided grab sampler. Strangely, all but one specimen has lost the shell (except fragments) upon recovery on-board the research vessel, possibly damaged during sampling and being tossed around with chimney fragments in the sampler. The one intact specimen, with a shell length of 5.1 mm, was naturally desginated the holotype (shown). It can be differentiated from other described Neolepetopsis species by the details of its shell sculpture, although the pluricuspid tooth with two heavy cusps and much reduced marginal teeth also help. The shell is translucent, does not exhibit prismatic structure colour, and is covered by a layer of greenish periostracum. The specific epithet means 'high, steep, difficult or troublesome', and it was named in witness of the difficulty of extracting and mounting the minute radula of this species, which is only about 30 micrometers in width.

Neolepetopsis prismatica Chen, Zhou, Watanabe, Zhang & Wang, 2021<br />
NEOLEPETOPSIDAE<br />
Holotype (Top & Right; RSIO 38210), 4.1 mm; paratype 1 (Bottom & Left; NSMT-Mo 79214), 4.2 mm<br />
On inactive sulfide deposit, Daxi vent field, Carlsberg Ridge, 60°10.8'E, 6°48.0'N, 3450 m deep (station DV128), R/V Xiangyanghong 9 cruise DY38, by HOV Jiaolong during Dive #128, 2017/iii/11 <br />
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An iridescent limpet in the enigmatic patellogastropod family Neolepetopsidae restricted to deep-sea chemosynthetic habitats such as hot vents and cold seeps, Neolepetopsis prismatica is currently only known from the Daxi hydrothermal vent field on Carlsberg Ridge in the Indian Ocean, at 3450 m deep. As its name suggests, the translucent shell carries strong prismatic structure colours and exhibit a regular, strong, concentric ribbing that overshadows the dimunitive radial striation. The structural colour can even be observed through the very thin, greenish periostracum from the dorsal side. It is a little-varied species and individuals only differ slightly in the shell width-to-height ratio. Like other described species of Neolepetopsis, it is only known from a very specific habitat type that this genus appears to specialise in -- surfaces of inactive chimneys in the peripheral area of the vent field. Typical shell length around 3.5 mm, very large specimens approach 5 mm. <br />
<br />
Together with Neolepetopsis ardua Chen, Zhou, Watanabe, Zhang & Wang, 2021 it is the first species in this genus found ouside the eastern Pacific. This is likely due to the fact that inactive chimneys are rarely studied by biologists who mostly focus on active edifices, and the discovery of these Indian Ocean species suggest that the genus has a much wider distribution than previously thought. The predominantly concentric sculpture of N. prismatica serves to easily distinguish it from all other described Neolepetopsis species, which exhibit stronger radial sculpture and form nodes where the two sculpture types intersect. At the time of description, it is only known from about a dozen specimens, all collected together at a single sampling event by the Chinese manned submersible HOV Jiaolong.

Cheilea imbricata (Fischer von Waldheim, 1807)<br />
HIPPONICIDAE<br />
-15 m, Bohol Island, Central Visayas, Philippines, 2021/v, 24.5 mm <br />
<br />
Characterised by a shell with numerous shingle-like layers of translucent varices resembling multi-storied pagodas, the "Imbricating False Cup-and-Saucer" is an exquisite hipponicid distributed widely across the Indo-West Pacific. Although most specimens originate from southern Japan, Taiwan, and Philippines, its distribution extends westwards as far as eastern Africa where it is known from localities such as Réunion. Currently the earliest available name applied to this species is deemed to be C. imbricata, but it has been illustrated under the junior synonym Cheilea tectumsinensis (Lamarck, 1822) in many publications and is better known under that name. A deposit-feeding gastropod, it inhabits hard substrates on reefs such as corals from intertidal waters down to subtidal depths of about -30 m (though shells have supposedly been collected much deeper to about -200 m in tangle nets). A rather variable species, the overall shell shape and sculpture appear to depend on the substrate each individual occupies, and the frequency and number of varices vary greatly among specimens. Despite this, no other Cheilea species exhibit such an exaggerated sculpture and it is therefore easily identified. It is a common species in most parts of its extensive range, but finding a specimen with intact 'roofs' can be a challenge. The typical shell diameter is around 15 mm, while very large specimens may exceed 25 mm.

Buccipagoda kengrahami (Ponder, 1982)<br />
BUCCINIDAE<br />
-700~800 m, Trawled, Off Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia, 1980's, 47.3 mm <br />
<br />
With a highly unusual shell characterised by a strongly constricted suture and flaring, rounded shoulder, the "Ken Graham's Whelk" is surely one of the most exquisitely sculptured buccinids. An enigmatic rarity endemic to Australia, its unique shell form resembling a soft serve ice cream has captivated many collectors and it is a greatly sought-after species. Initially, it was discovered in 1975 as a number of empty shells trawled by the New South Wales State Fisheries vessel FRV Kapala. Although clearly a new species, its description was held off in the hope of eventually finding fresh, live-taken specimens and the existing shells were housed in the Australia Museum. Before any actually came up however, the malacologist Dr. Anders Warén visited the museum and realised he had seen live-taken specimens of similar whelks in the Galathea collection, housed at Zoological Museum, Copenhagen where he worked at the time. These specimens, which had been in Copenhagen since their collection in the 1950s, were forwarded to the Australian Museum and finally the species could be described by Dr. Winston F. Ponder there in 1982, complete with anatomical details. It is much better known by the original name at the time of description, Kapala kengrahami Ponder, 1982 (with the genus named after FRV Kapala), but unfortunately that genus name was pre-occupied by the insect genus Kapala Cameron, 1884 and a replacement name, Buccipagoda, had to be proposed. <br />
<br />
A carnivorous and predatory gastropod, it inhabits muddy to sandy bottoms of deep waters around -400~1300 m and is now known to range from New South Wales south to Tasmania and Great Australian Bight. Though some specimens were available in the 1980s shortly after its description, few specimens have been taken since and it has become an exceedingly rare species today. Typical shell length around 60 mm, extremely large specimens are known to exceed 90 mm. The specific epithet honours Mr. Ken Graham of New South Wales State Fisheries, who collected many molluscs on-board FRV Kapala and provided them to the Australian Museum, including the first known specimens of this species. <br />
<br />
Originally considered to exhibit considerable variation in the strength of shoulder constriction at the time of description due to some individuals from Great Australian Bight having nearly flat shoulders, but Marshall & Walton recently examined a series of Buccipagoda specimens from Australia and in 2019 concluded that the flat-shouldered form should be treated as a separate species as no intergrades were found. The flat-shouldered form was described as Buccipagoda ponderi Marshall & Walton, 2019 and two Great Australian Bight paratypes of B. kengrahami were found to actually be B. ponderi -- now these two specimens are included in the paratype series of B. ponderi. Buccipagoda ponderi differs from B. kengrahami in having a consistently less adapically flared shoulder, a less vertically compressed spire, and usually also weaker spiral threads. Although both species are endemic to southeastern Australia, B. ponderi has a narrower distribution from the Great Australian Bight to Tasmania.

Angulyagra thersites (Reeve, 1864)<br />
VIVIPARIDAE<br />
On muddy sand, Zhuo River, Near Nanning, Guanxi Province, China, 2001, 26.5 mm<br />
<br />
Characterised by an attractive shell sculpture with four strong, thick spiral keels and depressed interspaces, Angulyagra thersites is a small viviparid freshwater snail endemic to Guangxi Province of China. Inhabiting soft bottoms of shallow waters down to about -20 m, it is a mixotrophic species capable of combining filter-feeding, grazing, and feeding on detritus. As is typical with vivipariids, female snails brood eggs inside the ovary until they hatch as juveniles. Although a locally common species in the rivers it inhabits, due to its restricted distribution it is rarely seen in collections. Although a little-varied species, individuals do vary somewhat in the strength of sculpture and the periostracum ranges between light olive to dark green in colouration. The early whorls are typically corroded in adult shells. Typical shell length around 25 mm, very large specimens may reach 30 mm. Though other members of genus Angulyagra also carry strong spiral sculpture, no other species have such dramatic undulating sculpture and thus it cannot be mistaken for any other described species.

Bolma massieri Bozzetti, 1992<br />
TURBINIDAE<br />
-85 m, Dredged, Off Mdumbi, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, 2018, 92.5 mm <br />
<br />
The "Massier's Star" is a moderately large turbinid characterised by a peripheral keel carrying over ten short, wide spines per whorl and a colour pattern consisting of alternating lighter and darker axial colour bands. Though usually considered an endemic species of South Africa ranging between Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces, there are also some questionable records from southern Mozambique. Feeding by grazing on organic matter of various sorts, it inhabits hard substrates of moderate depths and most live-collected specimens have been found around 100 m deep -- although the known bathymetric range including empty shells is much wider between 50~500 m deep. A rare species, it is typically taken crabbed and finding a nice live-collected specimen can be very challenging. The operculum is thick and calcareous as is typical for the family, in this species the operculum lacks significant sculpture and often exhibit semi-transparent zones. Although instantly recognisable, specimens do vary in the number of spines and also the base colouration, which can range from light beigh to brown to yellow. Typical shell diameter around 75 mm, very large specimens may reach 100 mm. <br />
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The only species it may be confused with is Bolma tayloriana (Smith, 1880) which has a more western distribution between Eastern Cape and Western Cape provinces in South Africa, and indeed when B. massieri first appeared in the literature in 1979 it was identified as "Bolma cf. tayloriana". Though B. tayloriana often carry a similar alternating colour pattern as B. massieri, the two species are easily differentiated because B. tayloriana lacks spines on the periphery. The namesake of B. massieri is the German conchologist and shell dealer Werner Massier, who moved to Namibia in his youth and has since become a major supplier of African specimen shells worldwide.

Conus adamsonii Broderip, 1836 <br />
CONIDAE<br />
-8 m, Dived, Taiohae Bay, Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia, 42.6 mm <br />
<br />
With truly spellbinding patterns on its shell, the "Rhododendron Cone" is a great classic rarity among the conids and one of the most sought-after by collectors. One of S. Peter Dance's 50 "Rare Shells" (1969), it is still a very difficult species to obtain today in fine condition. The shell characteristically carry three broad spiral bands with sparse nebulous patterns which alternate with another three narrower spiral bands with small triangular spots. <br />
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Rather widely distributed in the Pacific Ocean ranging from Coral Sea to French Polynesia, different populations vary in shell form, size, as well as colouration. Specimens from the Marquesas Islands (shown), for example, are notable in being instantly recognisable by their exceptionally intense magenta colouration and are also typically more cylindrical in form. Due to the attractive colouration and the fact that it appears to be locally rare in that restricted locality, Marquesan specimens are by far the most sought-after by collectors. In contrast, the most widely available Cook Islands population is typified by a pinkish colouration and generally conical shells. Its greater availability in Cook Islands is largely due to specimens being often beached after typhoons pass, but most of such specimens are worn with badly damaged lip. A predatory gastropod like all conids, it is a piscivorous species which hunt fishes using venom injected from its harpoon-like radula. Inhabiting sandy bottoms of coral reefs and lagoons, it can be found from low intertidal waters down to moderate depths around -60 m deep. <br />
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Its vernacular name comes from a famous synonym, Conus rhododendron Jay, 1839, which is very appropriate but unfortunately must give way to Broderip's earlier name. Typical shell length around 35~40mm depending on the locality, extremely large specimens are known to exceed 55mm. It is considered to be a member of the subgenus Textilia, which many prefer to treat as a full genus.

Fulgurofusus brayi (Clench, 1959)<br />
COLUMBARIIDAE<br />
-300~350 m, Dredged in Colombian Basin, Off Santa Marta, Magdalena, Colombia, 2015/vi, 60.3 mm <br />
<br />
The simple yet astonishing shell sculpture consisting of a single sharply raised, blade-like peripheral fringe makes the "Bray's Pagoda" one of the most elegant columbariids of all. Inhabiting soft bottoms of considerable depths between -250~800 m, it has a rather wide distribution ranging from the lesser Antilles along the southern Caribbean Sea to Panama and further extending to northern Brazil. Although highly coveted by shell collectors due to its unique and attractive shell shape, it is very rarely seen in collections -- likely owing to the depth it inhabits. Most specimens are recovered with major damages to the flange, locating a high-quality specimen is a real challenge. A carnivorous and predatory gastropod specialising on polychaete worms like other columbariids, the examination of its stomach contents has revealed polychaete setae belonging to Serpulidae and Chaetopteridae. <br />
<br />
Despite being unmistakable and instantly recognisable from its shell form, specimens vary greatly in the development of the peripheral keel with some having short, upturned ones and others exhibiting flat flanges as wide as the aperture. The spire height is also somewhat variable, in extreme cases the reduced spire height means the peripheral keel is at the suture line, resulting in keels of all whorls converging on the same plane. There are numerous fine spiral striae anterior of the periphery, and the strength of these striae vary greatly among individuals. The shell colour can range from whitish to tan; there is a very thin, yellowish periostracum but typically only traces remain on the shell. Typical shell length around 45 mm, extremely large specimens can exceed 70 mm. It was named after W. Scott Bray, Captain of R/V Atlantis on its cruise number 240 in 1957, during which the first two specimens of this species were collected (later holotype and paratype) off Cabo Codera, Venezuela.

Cucurbitula cymbium (Spengler, 1783)<br />
GASTROCHAENIDAE<br />
Hat Arunothai Beach, Thung Tako, Chumphon, Thailand, 2012/i/11, 17.6 mm <br />
<br />
Living a sessile life cemented to hard substrates, typically dead molluscan shells, the "Flask Cockle" is an unusual bivalve in Gastrochaenidae capable of building a gourd-shaped calcareous case (shown) that covers and protects its true shells. The case has a 'stepped' appearance and often contains materials such as sand grains and shell fragments, it encloses the entire animal with only a narrow opening to allow the siphons to extend into the surrounding seawater. The true valves contained within the case are narrow and near-rectangular in shape with the dorsal and ventral margins being almost parallel, having a very slight curvature that vary from specimen to specimen; as is typical for gastrochaenids there is a large opening on the ventral side when the valves are closed. A rather common filter-feeding species inhabiting low intertidal to infralittoral waters down to about -10 m, the typical length of the casing is about 15 mm but very large specimens may reach 25 mm (valves typically 10 mm in length but may exceed 20 mm). A very widespread Indo-West Pacific species, it ranges from the eastern Indian Ocean to Japan to Australia. <br />
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It has also been introduced to the Mediterranean Sea where it definitively occurs in Israel, but records based only on external cases from other Mediterranean localities are likely to be misidentifications of the native Gastrochaena dubia Pennant, 1777. The source of confusion is that G. dubia is more typically a rock-borer, and only rarely occurs on surface of molluscan shells and other hard substrates. When living inside rocks it does not produce a case similar to C. cymbium and instead produces a more elongated 'siphonal tube', so its capacity to produce a similar casing to C. cymbium is often neglected. The two species are easily differentiated by the morphology of the true valves, which are ovate in shape with convex margins in G. dubia.

Megasurcula carpenteriana (Gabb, 1865)<br />
PSEUDOMELATOMIDAE<br />
-30~33 m, Dived in soft sand, One mile (1.6 km) south of Marina Del Rey Harbour, California, U.S.A., 1999/xi, 72.7 mm <br />
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The "Carpenter's Turrid" is a large pseudomelatomid snail characterised by a shell with regular shoulder knobs, a distinct subsutural ramp, and dense spiral lines, ranging from California, U.S.A. to Baja California, Mexico. A carnivorous and predatory gastropod feeding on other invertebrate animals, it inhabits sandy bottoms of moderate depths between -20~100 m and is a rather common species sometimes found in large colonies. Although many specimens have strong shoulder knobs all the way until the adult body whorl, this is variable and some specimens only have shoulder knobs on early whorls. The frequency of shoulder knobs also often decreases towards the later whorls. Typical shell length around 70 mm, extremely large specimens exceed 90 mm. Most closely related to the co-occurring congener Megasurcula stearnsiana (Raymond, 1904), which is easily distinguished from M. carpenteriana by the following characters: 1) Complete lack of knobs on the spire, 2) Weaker subsutural ramp than M. carpenteriana, 3) A smaller shell (typically does not exceed 50 mm in length), and 4) Darker, wider spiral banding. It was named in honour of the British malacologist Rev. Dr. Philip Pearsall Carpenter (1819-1877).

Umbilia armeniaca Verco, 1912<br />
CYPRAEIDAE<br />
-135~145 m, Trawled on soft bottom, Off Ceduna, Great Australian Bight, South Australia, Australia, 85.4 mm <br />
<br />
As its name suggests, the "Apricot-Coloured Cowrie" is a cypraeid with a spectacularly coloured, large shell endemic to southern Australia; and one of the most iconic species of the region. Ranging between Perth, Western Australia and Port Lincoln area, South Australia, it is currently divided into four subspecies. <br />
<br />
The nominal subspecies (shown) is distributed throughout the Great Australia Bight between around -40~200 m, with a typical shell length of 85 mm and the largest specimens exceed 120 mm. Once very rare in the 1900s, the nominal subspecies has since been collected in large numbers as trawl bycatches and is now moderately common. The form name f. southstralica has once been proposed for generally smaller, darker shells supposedly from the eastern part of the range and f. westralica for the lighter, larger ones from supposedly the western part, but now it has become clear that both co-occur throughout the Great Australian Bight and are not regional variations. The easternmost subspecies U. a. diprotodon Lorenz & Beals, 2012 is limited to moderate depths of -30~60 m in the Port Lincoln area, characterised by large shells (typical shell length 100 mm, largest around 120 mm), short extremities, hints of blue along the margins and extremities, fine and short columellar teeth. This subspecies has been known under the form name f. brunnea for a long time but never received a formally published name; the informally published name f. hypersaturata also points to the same population. This subspecies used to be common in the 1990s, but is now very rare due to unclear reasons. Immediately west of the Great Australia Bight is home to the subspecies U. a. clarksoni limited to around -30~60 m deep in the Esperance area. Characterised by light, elongate shells with reduced margins and extremities (typical shell length 90 mm, largest shells exceed 105 mm), this is the rarest subspecies and it is suspected that its true habitat has not been located. Finally, U. a. andreyi inhabits deeper waters around -100~250 m further to the west, up to around Perth. This is a subspecies with very heavy, smaller shells (typical shell length 75 mm, very large specimens exceed 85 mm) and coarser, longer columellar teeth; it used to be extremely rare but recently a considerable number have been collected using remotely operated vehicles near Albany. All subspecies live on sand and rubble bottoms, they are spongivorous grazers and are usually found in association with their food sponges. <br />
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The dorsal pattern is greatly variable among individuals, and to a lesser extent the saturation of the colour; albinistic specimens are extremely rare but do exist. The three non-nominal subspecies have been named in honour of the extinct giant marsupial Diprotodon, the famed Australian collector and diver Peter Clarkson, and the Russian cowrie collector Andrey Kostin.

Spondylus clarksoni Lamprell, 1992<br />
SPONDYLIDAE<br />
-27 m, Dived on flat reef, Exmouth, Western Australia, Australia, 115.4 mm <br />
<br />
The "Clarkson's Thorny Oyster" is a captivating spondylid characterised by a shell with pinkish colouration, especially near the umbo, and raised spatulated spines. Endemic to the northern part of Western Australia, Australia, it lives permanently cemented to hard bottoms on reefs between about -10~50 m deep and is a filter-feeder like all spondylids. Although unlikely to be truly rare in its natural habitat, individuals are typically covered by sponges and it is only rarely found with the shell in good condition. A little-varied and easily recognisable taxon among Spondylus species, individuals only differ in shell shape (determined to a certain extent by the substrate shape) and spine development. Typical shell length around 110 mm, very large specimens may exceed 140 mm. <br />
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Named in honour of the famed Australian diver Peter Clarkson, who was a commercial abalone diver but also one of the most prolific shell diver and collector, discovering many new species and previously unknown habitats. Clarkson tragically lost his life in February 2011 to a shark attack while diving near Port Lincoln, but he is remembered by his extensive contributions to the understanding of molluscan life in Australia and will remain an inspiration for collectors many generations to come.

Serratifusus virginiae Harasewych, 1991<br />
AUSTROSIPHONIDAE<br />
-350~550 m, Dredged, Of Isle of Pines, New Caledonia, 2002, 48.2 mm <br />
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Endemic to waters around Isle of Pines, New Caledonia, Serratifusus virginiae is a typical representative of the unusual buccinoidean snail genus Serratifusus whose shell superficially resembles members of Columbariidae (Turbinelloidea), the pagoda snails, and was initially placed in that family. The protoconch characters hinted that it may have different affinities and some authors even placed it in Fasciolariidae, but until the description of S. virgineus in 1991 all known species including the type species, Serratifusus craspedotus (Tate, 1888), were fossils from Miocene which precluded the examination of its radula and anatomy. Finally, dissection of S. virgineus revealed radula and soft part features typical of Buccinidae, resulting in its transfer to that family. More recently, a systematic revision of Buccinoidea has redistributed genera originally assigned to Buccinidae into several families, with Serratifusus being moved to Austrosiphonidae. <br />
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Inhabiting soft bottoms of moderately deep waters around -350~500 m, it is a rather rarely seen species due to its restricted distribution. The shell is somewhat variable with regards to spine development and curvature (can be directed either to the anterior or posterior), spire height, and curvature of the siphonal canal. Although the feeding ecology is not known, it is probably a carnivorous and predatory snail feeding on other invertebrate animals. Typical shell length around 40 mm, very large specimens may reach 55 mm. It differs from all known living species in the genus by its long, hollow spines, and a colour pattern that lacks clear spiral bands as is typical of other species. In fact, it is mroe similar to the extinct Miocene species S. craspedotus in terms of shell form and spine formation. It’s name honours Virginie Heros, curator of Mollusca at Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris.

Otukaia kiheiziebisu (Otuka, 1939) <br />
CALLIOSTOMATIDAE<br />
-860 m, On the tube of the siboglinid worm Lamellibrachia columna Southward, 1991, 'Off Hatsushima' seep site (35°00.954'N 139°13.326'E), Sagami Bay, Japan, KM-ROV dive #150, R/V KAIMEI Cruise KM21-E02, 19.2 mm <br />
NSMT-Mo 79206 [National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba, Japan]<br />
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A striking shell ornamented with three to four pleating keels makes the unmistakable the "Kiheizi's Top" one of the most famous Japanese calliostomatids and a classic rarity. It is endemic to Japan with its range restricted to the Pacific side of southern Hokkaido to Honshu to Shikoku. Most specimens are collected as trawling by-catch from soft bottoms of deep water around -200~1000 deep, but it is very rare throughout its range and is a highly sought after species. Typical shell length around 30mm, very large specimens as shown may exceed 35mm. It was christened 'kiheiziebisu' after a famous Japanese collector, Mr. Kiheizi Ōshima, who first collected it from the fish market of Chōshi, Chiba Prefecture; 'ebisu' literally means 'top shell' in Japanese. It is also the type species of genus Otukaia, as designated by Ikebe, 1942. Although its feeding habits are not well known it is most likely a carnivorous grazer feeding on cnidarian and other sessile organisms. The specimen shown here was collected living on the tubeworm Lamellibrachia columna Southward, 1991, and appeared to be feeding on the hydroids which were growing on the tubes. This was not only its first record from a cold seep (a chemosynthesis-based ecosystem), but also the first record of a live specimen from Sagami Bay. Furthermore, this makes it just the second calliostomatid species known from a cold seep worldwide. It is most similar to the more southern sister species Otukaia ikukoae Sakurai, 1994 with five or more finely granulated keels instead of three to four smooth ones, which is distributed from off Shikoku south to Okinawa in Japan. Similarly, O. ikukoae has also been spotted living on the same Lamellibrachia columna tubeworms, but in a hydrothermal vent in Okinawa Trough.

Sagamilepeta sagamiensis (Kuroda & Habe in Kuroda, Habe & Oyama, 1971)<br />
LEPETIDAE<br />
-760 m, On plastic debris, KM-ROV dive #150, R/V KAIMEI Cruise KM21-E02, Off Misaki, Sagami Bay, 35°04.197'N 139°32.575'E, Japan, 10.5 mm<br />
NSMT-Mo 79213 [National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba, Japan]<br />
<br />
Originally described based on materials in the collection of Japan's Emperor Showa dredged from Sagami Bay, the lepetid true limpet Sagamilepeta sagamiensis is, as its name suggests, apparently endemic to Sagami Bay. A grazer feeding on bacterial mats and organic deposit on rocks and other hard substrates, it has a known depth range between 180 and 905 m and typically occur on dead shells and gravels among muddy bottoms. Recently, it was also found to inhabit plastic debris, like the specimen depicted here. It is a rarely seen species due to the depth range it inhabits being rarely sampled in Sagami Bay. Shells of individuals from deeper part of its range exhibits coarser shell sculpture (shown), which is known to intergrade with shallow water populations with finer sculptures. Most specimens have shells covered by a layer of black deposits, although the underlying shell colour is dirty or yellowish white. Typical shell length around 10 mm, very large specimens exceed 15 mm. First described in the genus Lepeta based on shell only, later the Japanese malacologist Takashi Okutani proposed the genus Sagamilepeta for it based on radula features. Today it remains the only species assigned to Sagamilepeta.

Circomphalus hiraseanus (Kuroda, 1930)<br />
VENERIDAE<br />
-150~200 m, Trawled, East China Sea, 2019/iii, 19.2 mm <br />
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Sharply upturned commarginal ribs characterises the shell of "Hirase's Venus", a venerid bivalve ranging from central Honshu to Izu-Ogasawara region in Japan and southwards throughout the East China Sea. A filter-feeding bivalve inhabiting sandy bottoms, it inhabits shallow to moderate depths between -20~200 m. The commarginal ribs give the shell a frilly appearance and it is considered one of the most distinctive and attractive among bivalves of this region, and has always been a highly sought-after classic species by collectors, especially in Japan. Once extremely rare, only in the recent decade it has become more obtainable through Chinese trawl ships operating in the East China Sea. Most specimens have considerable damage to the frilly concentric ribs, it is still difficult to obtain a high-quality specimen. The shell is little-varied, although specimens vary somewhat in the number and frequency of commarginal ribs. The shell colouration is typically white, but it may also carry some yellowish or pinkish hue. Typical shell length around 20 mm, very large specimens may exceed 25 mm. Originally described in the genus Callanaitis, it was later moved to Circomphalus. <br />
<br />
It has an elegant Japanese name, 'Yume-Hamaguri', literally meaning the 'Dream Clam'. The Japanese malacologist Tetsuaki Kira (1888-1965) named his remarkable Japanese shell club magazine (the 'Yumehamaguri'), which continued for 14 years and 100 volumes since its start in 1946, after this species. Despite being in a different genus, it bears great superficial resemblance to the much larger Australian "Wedding Cake Venus" Bassina disjecta (Perry, 1811), which is also acknowledged in the Japanese name of B. disjecta, 'Ijin-No-Yume-Hamaguri', literally meaning the 'Foreign Dream Clam'.

Africolaria thersites (Reeve, 1847)<br />
FASCIOLARIIDAE<br />
-250 m, Trawled, Agulhas Bank, South Africa, 81.3 mm <br />
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One of the most peculiar fasciolariid snails with the shell bearing highly characteristic strongly raised auriculate (ear-like) axial ribs, Africolaria thersites is a species endemic to South Africa where most specimens have been trawled from the Agulhas Bank region. Originally described as a turbinellid by Lovell A. Reeve (1814-1865) based on a single holotype from the Admiral Sir Edward Belcher (1799-1877) collection, the locality was supposedly China. This species was then "lost" for over a Century, with no specimens resembling the holotype being collected in Asian waters. Finally in 1993 the South African malacologist Richard 'Dick' Kilburn (1942-2013) noted that the holotype is morphologically identical to juvenile specimens of a rare and previously unidentified fasciolariid from South Africa and the holotype must have been mislocalised, settling both its true distribution and familial assignment. Since Admiral Belcher also led dredge expeditions in South Africa, the holotype was probably accidentally mixed with other materials in his collection; several other such cases of locality confusion in specimens originating from the Belcher collection have been noted in the literature. Although a single specimen supposedly from Nacala Bay, Mozambique, Kilburn concluded that this is also likely a mislocalisation and that the species is most likely a South African endemic. <br />
<br />
Placed in Fasciolaria by Kilburn, it was later moved to Africolaria in 2012 when that genus was proposed for a number of fasciolariids endemic to South Africa, based on the uncrenulated outer lip whose inner surface lacks lirae. The auriculate axial ribbing in this species is unusual among Africolaria species too, making it impossible to confuse with other fasciolariid species. The raised ribs usually become weakened in later whorls, but this is very variable among individuals and some exhibit the ribs throughout (shown). A rarely seen species found on soft bottoms of moderately deep waters around 100~300 m depth, it is presumably a carnivorous and predatory snail like other fasciolariids. Typical shell length around 80 mm, very large specimens may exceed 120 mm.

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