Gibberulus gibberulus

Gibberulus gibberulus, common name the humpbacked conch, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs.^[1]

Gibberulus gibberulus
Five views of a shell of Gibberulus gibberulus Mörch, 1850
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Littorinimorpha
Family:	Strombidae
Genus:	Gibberulus
Species:	G. gibberulus
Binomial name
Gibberulus gibberulus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms[1]
Aporrhais gibberulus Mörch, 1852 Canarium gibberulum Frauenfeld, 1869 Gibberulus gibberulus gibberulus (Linnaeus, 1758) · accepted, alternate representation Oostrombus gibberulus Cotton, B.C. 1953 Strombus gibberulus Linnaeus, 1758 (original combination) Strombus gibberulus Linnaeus, 1758 Strombus labiatus Perry, 1811

There are two subspecies :

• Gibberulus gibberulus albus (Mörch, 1850)
• Gibberulus gibberulus gibberulus (Linnaeus, 1758): represented as Gibberulus gibberulus (Linnaeus, 1758) (alternate representation)
• Gibberulus gibberulus gibbosus (Röding, 1798) (synonyms: Gibberulus gibbosus (Röding, 1798); Lambis gibbosa Röding, 1798 (original combination))

Description

Shell of Gibberulus gibberulus (Index Testarum Conchyliorum (1742) of Niccolò Gualtieri)

The adult shell size varies between 30 mm and 70 mm. The smooth shell is gibbous. The spire is occasionally varicose. The body whorl is grooved at the base. The columella is smooth. The interior of the aperture is radiately striate. The shell is mottled and hieroglyphically marked with yellowish brown and white. The markings are often arranged in a few or numerous interrupted revolving bands. The aperture is tinged violaceous, scarlet or dark purplish brown.^[2]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean off Aldabra, Chagos, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, the Seychelles and Tanzania; in the Pacific Ocean off Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia).