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MYTILIDAE |
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Solamen recens (Tate, 1897) Description: Shape equivalve, inequilateral, semicircular, light in weight, globose; umbo at anterior end, incurved. Valves oval in outline. Margin crenulate. Hinge without teeth. Ligament moderately long. Interior smooth, muscle scars obscure. Exterior with dense radial threads, crossed by concentric growth ridges towards posterior end. Colour of shell white. Periostracum thin, fawn. Size: Largest available specimen 28 mm in length. Distribution: In Australia, known from Port Stephens, NSW, southward to St. Francis Island, SA, including Tasmania. Habitat: Australian Museum specimens are from 15–150 m depth. Synonymy: Solamen rex Iredale, 1924 is a previously recognised synonym. Remarks: The name used for this species in the Australian Faunal Directory is Solamen spectabilis (A. Adams, 1862), based on Huber (2010). That species has a type locality of the Sea of Japan, and is recorded by modern authors from the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea and Japan. In figures it certainly looks like the Australian species, but in the absence of distributional data connecting the Australian species to the Asian distribution, I prefer to retain Tate’s name. The World Register of Marine Species maintains them as different species. Fig. 1: Port Stephens, NSW at 5.5–13 m depth (C.226970) Fig. 2: Off Botany Bay, NSW, in 128 m (C.363706) |
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