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DENTALIIDAE |
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Dentalium woolacottae Colman, 1958 Description: Shape moderately or strongly curved. Weight moderately solid. Aperture diameter up to 2.3 mm. Apex diameter 1.2 mm. Sculpture 15–18 longitudinal ribs with fine striae in the interspaces. Transverse sculpture absent. Aperture circular. Colour white with 2–10 bands of lower opacity in some specimens. Size: Up to 20 mm in length. Distribution: Global distribution unknown. Assumed to be endemic to Australia with a distribution from the Capricorn-Bunker Group, Qld, southwards to Sydney, NSW. Habitat: Dredged from 9 to 40 m in sandy mud (Lamprell & Healy, 1998). Moderately common subtidally. Occasionally found as beach wash-up around Sydney. Comparison: This relatively small species is characterised by the bands of lower opacity (or greater transparency) along the shell’s length. They are often faint, and are not apparent in old specimens which have become completely opaque. The shell is unusually broad and rapidly tapering, with 15–18 longitudinal ribs. Fig. 1: Manly, Sydney, NSW (C.173023). |
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