Filodrillia columnaria facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Filodrillia columnaria |
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| Original image of a shell of Filodrillia columnaria | |
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Filodrillia columnaria is a fascinating type of small sea snail. It's a marine gastropod, which means it's a kind of mollusk that lives in the ocean and has a single shell. This particular snail belongs to the Borsoniidae family.
Contents
About the Filodrillia columnaria Shell
The shell of the Filodrillia columnaria snail has a very unique shape. It is long and slender, like a spindle. Its main color is a light, creamy yellow, often called "buff." It also has a lighter band around its edge, with a cool orange stripe just below it.
Shell Features
The shell has about seven and a half whorls, which are the spiral turns of the shell. The first two whorls are special; they form the very first part of the shell when the snail was a tiny baby. This part is called the protoconch.
The shell's surface has interesting patterns, known as its sculpture. Unlike some snails, this one doesn't have radial lines (lines going from the center outwards). Instead, it has fine, close threads in a specific area called the fasciole. The rest of the shell has stronger, evenly spaced cords. There are usually seven of these cords on the second-to-last whorl and about twenty-two on the main body whorl.
Shell Opening and Lip
The opening of the shell is called the aperture. It's quite open, and its right edge goes slightly above the main seam of the shell (the suture). You might notice a small ridge, called a varix, just behind the opening. The outer edge of the shell's lip is slightly bumpy because of the spiral patterns on the shell. Inside, the inner lip has a thin, smooth layer.
The snail also has a deep, spout-shaped groove called a sinus. This is where the snail's breathing tube, or siphonal canal, is located. The siphonal canal itself is short and open.
Where Filodrillia columnaria Lives
This marine snail is found only in one specific area, which means it is endemic to that place. The Filodrillia columnaria lives off the coast of Tasmania, an island state of Australia.
Further Reading
- May, W.L. 1923. An Illustrated Index of Tasmanian Shells: with 47 plates and 1052 species. Hobart : Government Printer 100 pp.
