|
| |
Phylum
Mollusca
Class
Gastropoda
Family
Vermetidae
Worm Snails
| Worm snails are suspension-feeding gastropods that have tubular
uncoiled shells attached to the substrate. Some aggregate to form
reefs of their own. |
HAWAII
Serpulorbis
variabilis
Kapoho Point, Kailua, Oahu
|
Makapu'u tidepool, Oahu |
Sharks Cove, Oahu, 30 feet
|
Portlock, Oahu |
|
|
|
|
| Brown shell is criss-crossed by strong ribs. There is no
operculum. Aperture diameter up to 1/3 inch, whorls up to 2
inches. Common on shallow reefs. Hawaiian, Line, and
Marshall Islands. |
Vermetus
alii 
Ft. Kamehemeha, Oahu, 2 feet
|
Ft. Kamehemeha, Oahu, 2 feet |
Ft. Kamehemeha, Oahu, 2 feet |
|
|
|
|
|
| Gray shell has fine ribs and the purple animal has a large
operculum. Found on rocks in bays. Aperture diameter up to
1/3 inch, whorls up to 2 inches. Endemic to Hawaii. |
Dendropoma gregaria
Diamond Head, Oahu
|
Diamond Head, Oahu |
Diamond Head, Oahu
|
Diamond Head, Oahu |
Diamond Head, Oahu
|
Diamond Head, Oahu |
Diamond Head, Oahu |
Vermetid Reef, Diamond Head, Oahu |
|
|
GREGARIOUS WORM SNAIL
| Forms thick mats nearly 2 inches thick on wave benches. Shells
brown with very dark aperture. Aperture diameter up to 1/8 inch,
whorls up to 1/2 inch. Hawaii & the Central Pacific. |
Petaloconchus keenae
Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, 3 feet |
Kapoho tidepool, Hawaii |
|
|
|
|
|
|
KEEN'S WORM SNAIL
| Abundant on hard surfaces at any depth. Lightly
sculptured tube coiled with end projecting upward. Animal brown or
purple with white marks, yellow mantle edge. Operculum
black. Aperture diameter up to 1/4 inch, whorls up to 1/2
inch. Hawaii & the Marshall Islands. |
EASTERN PACIFIC
Serpulorbis squamigerus
Rock Quarry, Catalina, California, 40 feet
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Common on and under stones. About 1/3 inch in diameter.
Southern California. |
|
