Antiguraleus permutatus facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Antiguraleus permutatus
Original image of a shell of Antiguraleus permutatus
Scientific classification
Synonyms
Guraleus permutatus Hedley, 1922 (original combination) Paraguraleus permutatus (Hedley, 1922)

Antiguraleus permutatus is a type of small sea snail that lives in the ocean. It's a marine gastropod mollusk, which means it's an animal with a soft body, often protected by a shell, like clams or octopuses. This particular snail belongs to the family Mangeliidae.

What Does It Look Like?

The shell of Antiguraleus permutatus is quite small. It usually grows to about 5.7 millimeters (which is less than a quarter of an inch) long and 2.5 millimeters wide.

Shell Features

• Shape and Color: The shell has an oval, tube-like shape and is a bit rounded. When it's young, the very first part of the shell (called the protoconch) is white. The rest of the shell is a pale cream color.
• Spirals: The shell has five spirals or turns. The first two spirals form a slightly raised tip.
• Surface Design: On the first adult spiral, you can see about ten thin, raised lines that are spaced far apart. These lines become less clear as the snail grows older. The entire shell surface also has many tiny spiral scratches that you might need a magnifying glass to see.
• Opening: The shell has a narrow, vertical opening called the aperture.
• Outer Lip: There's a noticeable, expanded ridge near the opening, called a varix. Near the top of this ridge, there's a wide, shallow notch.
• Inner Part: Inside the shell, there's a strong, smooth area on the central pillar (called the columella).
• Siphon Tube: The shell also has a short, wide, open tube-like opening called the siphonal canal. This is where the snail extends a special tube to draw in water.

Where Does It Live?

This marine snail is found only in Australia. Specifically, it lives off the coast of New South Wales.

See Also

• Gastropod
• Mollusc
• Sea snail