Turbo marmoratus
| Turbo marmoratus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Two views of a shell of Turbo marmoratus. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| (unranked): | clade Vetigastropoda |
| Superfamily: | Trochoidea |
| Family: | Turbinidae |
| Subfamily: | Turbininae |
| Genus: | Turbo |
| Subgenus: | Lunatica[citation needed] |
| Species: | T. marmoratus |
| Binomial name | |
| Turbo marmoratus Linnaeus, 1758 | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Turbo marmoratus, the marbled turban or great green turban, is a large species of marine gastropod with a calcareous operculum in the family Turbinidae, the turban snails. [1]
Some authors place this species in the subgenus Turbo (Lunatica).
Distribution
These large snails live in tropical reefs in the Indian Ocean (off Tanzania, Madagascar, Aldabra and the Mascarene Basin) and tropical western Pacific oceans; also off Queensland, Australia. They are nocturnal and feed on algae.
Description
The distinctive shell grows to a length of 18 cm. It bears blunt tubercles, especially strong on the shoulders. Its colour is greyish-green. Its large, circular aperture has a golden, pearly shine.
Turbo marmoratus is the host of the ectoparasitic copepod Anthessius isamusi Uyeno & Nagasawa, 2012
The shell of marbled turbans is used as a source of nacre. Also, the large operculum of Turbo marmoratus have been used as paperweights..
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 WoRMS (2012). Turbo marmoratus Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=216369 on 2012-10-01
- Oostingh, C.H., 1925. Report on a collection of recent shells from Obi and Halmahera, Molluccas. Mededeelingen van de Landbouwhoogeschool Wageningen, 29(1):1-362.
- Allan, J., 1950. Australian Shells: with related animals living in the sea, in freshwater and on the land. Georgian House, Melbourne. xix 470 pp..
- Drivas, J. & M. Jay (1988). Coquillages de La Réunion et de l'île Maurice
- Wilson, B., 1993. Australian Marine Shells. Prosobranch Gastropods. Odyssey Publishing, Kallaroo, WA
- Alf A. & Kreipl K. (2003). A Conchological Iconography: The Family Turbinidae, Subfamily Turbininae, Genus Turbo. Conchbooks, Hackenheim Germany.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Turbo marmoratus. |