Penion mandarinus

Penion mandarinus, common name the mandarin penion, southern siphon whelk or Waite's buccinum whelk, is a species of medium-to-large predatory sea snail or whelk, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Austrosiphonidae.^[10][11]

Penion mandarinus
Penion mandarinus with eggs at Kennon Cove in Flinders
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Neogastropoda
Family:	Austrosiphonidae
Genus:	Penion
Species:	P. mandarinus
Binomial name
Penion mandarinus (Duclos, P.L., 1831)[1]
Synonyms
Berylsma grandis levifida Iredale, 1925[2] Fusus grandis Gray, 1839[3] Fusus mandarinus Duclos, 1832 (original combination) Fusus pastinacea Reeve, 1848[4][5] Fusus tasmaniensis Adams & Angas, 1864[6] Fusus waitei Hedley, 1903[7] Largisipho oligostira spectanda Iredale, 1929[8] Penion sulcatus mandarinus (Duclos, 1832) Siphonalia oligostira Tate, 1891[9]

Description

Penion mandarinus is a medium-to-large sized species of siphon whelk.^[12][13] The species could be confused with the sympatric species P. maximus, however P. mandarinus is typically smaller and has a smoother shell with a shorter siphonal canal.^[12]

Example shells

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Distribution

This marine species is endemic to Australia (New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria).^[12][13][14]

Evolution

Penion mandarinus is closely related to another Australian species P. maximus.^[13][15] The species have overlapping geographic ranges (sympatry) and may have evolved from a common ancestor via niche differentiation based on prey size and water depth.^[15]

Subspecies

These subspecies have been previously recognised:

• Penion mandarinus mandarinus (Duclos, P.L., 1831)^[12]
• Penion mandarinus waitei (Hedley, 1903)