Colus pygmaeus

Colus pygmaeus, common name the pygmy whelk, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Colidae, the true whelks and the like.^[1]

Colus pygmaeus
Colus pygmaeus shell
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Neogastropoda
Superfamily:	Buccinoidea
Family:	Colidae
Genus:	Colus
Species:	C. pygmaeus
Binomial name
Colus pygmaeus (Gould, 1841)
Synonyms
Fusus islandicus var. pygmaeus Gould, 1841 (basionym) Fusus trumbulli Linsley, 1845 · Sipho pygmaeus (Gould, 1841) Sipho pygmaeus var. planulus Verrill, 1882 Siphonorbis pygmaeus (Gould, 1841)

Description

The length of the shell attains 23.9 mm. The shell body is dextrally coiled (right-handed).^[2]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean. Colus pygmaeus is currently undergoing steep population declines, which has already led to, or if unchecked is likely to lead to, local extinction and/or range contraction.^[3]