Superfamily Trochoidea Rank Species | ||
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Similar Notogibbula, Oxystele tigrina, Bankivia fasciata | ||
Phasianotrochus irisodontes, common name the rainbow kelp or the green necklace shell, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Trochidae, the top snails.
Contents
Description
The height of the shell varies between 10 mm and 20 mm. The pointed, imperforate, solid shell has an elongated conic shape. It is polished, yellowish, pink, or olive-green, with reddish or olive longitudinal lines in pairs, sometimes separate on the body whorl, and usually with numerous narrow, rather obscure spiral pink or yellowish lines. It sometimes has a few series of white dots on the upper part. The conic spire is shorter and less attenuated than in Phasianotrochus bellulus. The about 7 whorls are scarcely convex. The body whorl is not carinate. It is finely striate beneath,and smooth above. The aperture is rather large, often expanded. It is smooth inside, lined with intensely green nacre. The columella is strongly toothed below.
The coloration is quite variable with even unicolored green specimens. The aperture is sometimes so dilated that the spire seems to lean to that side.
Distribution
This marine species is endemic to Australia and occurs in the subtidal and the lower intertidal zone off South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.