Malacology
Malacology is the study of mollusks. This includes animals like octopus, snails, slugs, and clams. It is the second largest phylum of animals, making them one of the most successful groups on the planet. There are over 80,000 described species of mollusks with many more left to be discovered. Mullusca is composed of 8 recognized classes including Cephalopoda, Gastropoda, Polyplacophora, Scaphapoda, Monoplacophorans, the Aplacophorans, Caudofoveata and Solenogastres, and Bivalvia.
Miniature Moonsnail
(Say, 1822)
Tectonatica pusilla
Class:
Gastropoda
Order:
Littorinimorpha
Family:
Naticidae
Image Voucher:
ANSP
Ecological Information
Distribution:
Depth (m):
Massachusets to the Caribbean Sea
0 to 130 meters
Diet:
Carnivore
Habitat:
Marine; Shallow to moderately deep water
Misc. Facts
Citations
MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Tectonatica pusilla (Say, 1822). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=160063 on 2021-06-23
Morris, P. A. (1987). A field guide to shells: Atlantic and Gulf coasts and the West Indies (3rd ed.). Houghton Mifflin.
Rosenberg, G. 2009. Malacolog 4.1.1: A Database of Western Atlantic Marine Mollusca. [WWW database (version 4.1.1)] URL http://www.malacolog.org/
Andrews, J. (1971). Seashells of the Texas Coast. University of Texas Press.