Retusa truncatula

Retusa truncatula is a species of very small head-shield sea snail or barrel-bubble snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Retusidae^[1]

Retusa truncatula
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Order:	Cephalaspidea
Family:	Retusidae
Genus:	Retusa
Species:	R. truncatula
Binomial name
Retusa truncatula (Bruguière, 1792)
Synonyms[1]
Bulla pellucida Brown, 1827 Bulla retusa Maton & Rackett, 1807 Bulla semisulcata Philippi, 1836 Bulla truncata Adams J., 1800 Bulla truncatula Bruguière, 1792 (original combination) Coleophysis effusa Monterosato, 1890 (dubious synonym) Cylichna truncatella Locard, 1886 Retusa (Coleophysis) piriformis Nordsieck, 1972 Retusa carinensis de Gregorio, 1889 Retusa dilatata Pallary, 1904 (dubious synonym) Retusa dilatata var. minor Pallary, 1904 (dubious synonym) Retusa piriformis Nordsieck, 1972 Retusa semisulcata (Philippi, 1836) Utriculus truncatulus (Bruguière, 1792) Utriculus truncatulus var. pellucida (Brown, 1827) Volvaria pellucida Brown, 1827

The subspecies Retusa truncatula var. mammilata: is a synonym of Retusa mammillata (Philippi, 1836)

Description

The shell is minute with a flattened spire and longitudinal striations. The colour of the living animal is white. The adult length is usually less than 4 mm.^[2]

Distribution

This species occurs in South Africa, from False Bay to Durban in shallow estuaries. It is also known from northern Europe, the Mediterranean Sea and the Canary Islands.^[2]

Natural history

This small sea snail lives from the intertidal zone to just below the low water mark. It burrows in the mud or sand of tidal marshes, and feeds on foraminiferans.^[2]