Inquisitor chocolatus
Species of gastropod
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Inquisitor chocolatus is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Pseudomelatomidae, the turrids and allies.[1]
| Inquisitor chocolatus | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Subclass: | Caenogastropoda |
| Order: | Neogastropoda |
| Superfamily: | Conoidea |
| Family: | Pseudomelatomidae |
| Genus: | Inquisitor |
| Species: | I. chocolatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Inquisitor chocolatus (Smith, E. A., 1875) | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Description
The length of the shell attains 25 mm, its diameter 7 mm.
The fusiform, shining shell contains 12 whorls of which 2-3 are in the protoconch. These are smooth and convex. The subsequent whorls are concave at the top, then slightly convex. The sculpture consists of a few rounded ribs and a few inconspicuous, spiral striae. These number 9 in the body whorl, becoming obsolete at the periphery. The aperture measures 2/5 of the total length. The outer lip is thin and extends in the middle. The sinus is rather deep. The siphonal canal is oblique and recurved.
The dark chocolate-colour, with the three yellowish spots which are slightly nodulous on each rib, and the smooth concavity at the upper part of the whorls are very distinctive characters. [2]
Distribution
This marine species occurs off Japan and the Philippines.