Zoological Illustrations Volume Ii Part 7

_Gualtieri_, _tab._ 6. _fig._ A.

Although unnamed, this sh.e.l.l is obviously the same as that figured by Gualtieri, who also describes it very tolerably. This figure, however, is quoted by Gmelin and others for _A. virginea_; from which sh.e.l.l it is quite distinct: it is a thickly formed sh.e.l.l, the base slightly truncated, and the aperture very narrow, and reddish brown; the outer lip within is thickened. From the same collection as the last.

Pl. 85

[Ill.u.s.tration]

IANTHINA fragilis,

_Common Oceanic Snail_--_upper and lower figures_.

GENERIC CHARACTER.

_Testa subglobosa, tenuis, fragilis. Spira depressa. Labium exterius medio emarginatum. Columella ultra aperturae basin producta. Animal marinum, vesicula solida pede supposita instructum._--Cuvier.

Sh.e.l.l subglobose, thin, brittle. Spire depressed. Outer lip notched in the middle. Base of the pillar projecting beyond the aperture. Animal marine, with a solid vesicle, placed under the foot.--_Cuvier._

SPECIFIC CHARACTER.

_I. testa pallida, anfractu basali angulato; basi complanata, striata, violacea; apertura latiore quam longiore; labio exteriore profunde emarginato._

Sh.e.l.l pale; body whirl angulated; the base flattened, striated and deep violet; aperture broader than long; outer lip deeply emarginate.

Helix Ianthina. _Gm._ 3645. _Lister._ 572. _fig._ 23. 24. _Turton._ C.

D. _p._ 58. _Gualt._ _tab._ 64. 0. _Mart._ v. _t._ 166. _fig._ 1577.-8?

Ianthina fragilis. _Bruguiere. Ency. Meth._ _pl._ 456. _fig._ 1. _a.

b._

The singular sh.e.l.ls of this genus float on the surface of the ocean, where they princ.i.p.ally live. Gmelin remarks that the animal emits a phosphoric light; and Captain Cook observed that it is oviparous, and discharged, on being touched, a liquor of the most beautiful purple. Dr. Turton and Mr.

Dillwyn have recorded several British localities for this sh.e.l.l; and the former notes having seen it alive, but without giving any original account of the animal. The extreme brittleness of the sh.e.l.l is such, that, although common, it is very rarely seen so perfect as here represented, from sh.e.l.ls in my own cabinet. All the figures I have seen are very defective.

IANTHINA globosa.

_Globular Oceanic Snail--middle figures._

_I. testa ventricosa, basi producta; apertura longiore quam latiore; labio exteriore leviter emarginato._

Sh.e.l.l ventricose, the base lengthened; aperture longer than broad; outer lip slightly emarginate.

The notch, which in _I. fragilis_ extends the whole length of the lip, in this, is very slight, and nearly central. Mr. Dubois has enabled me to figure it from specimens in the greatest perfection; it is much less common than the last.

Pl. 86

[Ill.u.s.tration]

CONUS Princeps,

_Prince Cone._

GENERIC CHARACTER.--See Pl. 65.

SPECIFIC CHARACTER.

_C. conicus, coronatus, roseus; lineis fusco-purpureis longitudinalibus subramosis; spira convexa._--Lamarck.

Coronated Cone, rosy, with brownish purple longitudinal lines, which are sometimes branched; spire convex.--_Lamarck._

Conus Princeps. _Gmelin._ 3378. (omitting var. [beta] and [gamma].) _Turton._ 4. 313. (omitting var. 2. and 3.)

Conus regius. _Martini_, vol. x. _pl._ 138. _fig._ 1276. _Brug._ _no._ 12. _Ency. Meth._ _pl._ 318. _fig._ 3. _Lamarck, Ann. du Mus._ p. 31.

_no._ 10.

The Cones are remarkable both for their beauty and the very high value attached to many of the varieties. They are likewise a very numerous family, and, with three or four exceptions, are all inhabitants of tropical lat.i.tudes, particularly the Indian Ocean. Bruguiere and Lamarck have each written very able descriptions of the species, of which the latter enumerates 179 recent, and 9 found only in a fossil state.

This is a sh.e.l.l of great rarity and beauty. Dead and injured specimens are often seen, in which the deep reddish brown colour is bleached to a pale rose, and the base worn round. Of the live sh.e.l.l I have never seen more than two or three; and the finest of these is here figured from Mr. Dubois'

cabinet: it is a native of the Asiatic Ocean.

I see no reason why the original name of Linnaeus for this sh.e.l.l should have been changed, although, under it, he has evidently included other species quite distinct; (his var. [beta] being _C. ebraeus_): indeed, it too often happens, that in making those alterations absolutely necessary in the present state of the science, the spirit of innovation oversteps the justice due to those, whose labours first laid the foundation of our own knowledge.

Pl. 87