Polinices

Milk moonsnail Polinices lacteus, copyright Deb Devers.

Belongs within: Naticidae.

Polinices is a genus of mostly white moon snails found in the Indo-Pacific oceans. They possess a brown corneous operculum, a medium to thick parietal callus and a partially to completely filled umbilicus.

Characters (from Oldroyd 1927): Shell oval or suboval, solid, smooth, spire short, sharp; aperture semicircular, inner lip oblique, callous, callus extending into umbilicus. Operculum corneous. Colour usually white, sometimes coloured but not banded or spotted.

<==Polinices Montfort 1810 [Poliniceinae, Polinicina, Polynicidae] BR05
    |--P. hepaticus (Röding 1798) S11
    `--+--P. lacteus (Guilding 1833) S11
       `--P. uberinus (Orbigny 1842) S11

Polinices incertae sedis:
  *P. albus Montfort 1810 BR17 [=Natica alba H09]
  P. albumen (Linnaeus 1758) [=Nerita albumen] H09
  P. ambiguus Suter 1913 (n. d.) F27
  P. aurantium (Bolten 1798) [=Albula aurantium] H09
  P. bifasciata C64
  P. columnaris (Recluz 1850) [=Natica columnaris] H09
  P. conicus (Lamarck 1822) WG71 [=Natica conicus H09]
  P. didyma (Bolten 1798) [=Albula didyma] H09
  P. duplicatus (Say 1822) F77
  P. filosa (Reeve 1855) [=Natica filosa] H09
  P. flemingiana (Recluz 1843) [=Natica flemingiana] H09
  P. hacketti Marincovich 1975 BC01
  P. huttoni M49
  P. incei (Philippi 1851) WG71 [=Natica incei H09]
  P. intracrassus Finlay 1924 [=Natica callosa Hutton 1873 (preoc.)] F27
  P. limi Pilsbry 1931 [=P. rapulum limi] BC01
  P. mammilla (Linnaeus 1758) BW09 [=Nerita mamilla H09]
  P. melanostomus (Gmelin 1799) BW09 [=Natica melanostoma H09]
  P. melanostomoides (Quoy & Gaimard 1833) [=Natica melanostomoides] H09
  P. mellosus Hedley 1924 WG71
  P. nanus Moller 1842 O27
  P. nuxcastanea (Martyn 1786) [=Nerita nuxcastanea] H09
  P. otis [=Natica otis; incl. P. fusca] C64
  P. perspicua C64
  P. peselephanti (Link 1807) MG-H11
  P. plumbeus (Lamarck 1822) [=Natica plumbea] H09
  P. powisiana (Recluz 1844) BW09
  P. pseudoredemptus JB12
  P. pyriformis Recluz 1844 WG71
  P. simiae (Deshayes 1838) BW09
  P. sordidus Swainson 1821 WG71
  P. triseriata (Say 1826) W78
  P. uber [incl. Natica virginea] O27

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[BR05] Bouchet, P., & J.-P. Rocroi. 2005. Classification and nomenclator of gastropod families. Malacologia 47 (1–2): 1–397.

[BR17] Bouchet, P., J.-P. Rocroi, B. Hausdorf, A. Kaim, Y. Kano, A. Nützel, P. Parkhaev, M. Schrödl & E. E. Strong. 2017. Revised classification, nomenclator and typification of gastropod and monoplacophoran families. Malacologia 61 (1–2): 1–526.

[BC01] Boyko, C. B., & J. R. Cordeiro. 2001. Catalog of Recent type specimens in the Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History. V. Mollusca, part 2 (class Gastropoda [exclusive of Opisthobranchia and Pulmonata], with supplements to Gastropoda [Opisthobranchia], and Bivalvia). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 262: 1–170.

[BW09] Bryce, C., & C. Whisson. 2009. The macromolluscs of Mermaid (Rowley Shoals), Scott and Seringapatam Reefs, Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 77: 177–208.

[C64] Carpenter, P. P. 1864. Supplementary report on the present state of our knowledge with regard to the Mollusca of the west coast of North America. Report of the British Association for the Advancement of Science 33: 517–686.

[F27] Finlay, H. J. 1927. New specific names for austral Mollusca. Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute 57: 488–533.

[F77] Franz, D. R. 1977. Size and age-specific predation by Lunatia heros (Say, 1822) on the surf clam Spisula solidissima (Dillwyn, 1817) off western Long Island, New York. Veliger 20 (2): 144–150.

[H09] Hedley, C. 1909. The Marine Fauna of Queensland: Address by the President of Section D. Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science: Brisbane.

[JB12] Johnson, M. E., & B. G. Baarli. 2012. Development of intertidal biotas through Phanerozoic time. In: Talent, J. A. (ed.) Earth and Life: Global biodiversity, extinction intervals and biogeographic perturbations through time pp. 63–128. Springer.

[M49] Mason, B. 1949. The geology of Mandamus-Pahau district, north Canterbury. Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand 77 (3): 403–428.

[MG-H11] McEnnulty, F. R., K. L. Gowlett-Holmes, A. Williams, F. Althaus, J. Fromont, G. C. B. Poore, T. D. O’Hara, L. Marsh, P. Kott, S. Slack-Smith, P. Alderslade & M. V. Kitahara. 2011. The deepwater megabenthic invertebrates on the western continental margin of Australia (100–1100 m depths): composition, distribution and novelty. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 80: 1–191.

[O27] Oldroyd, I. S. 1927. The Marine Shells of the West Coast of North America vol. 2 pt 3. Stanford University Press: Stanford University (California).

[S11] Simone, L. R. L. 2011. Phylogeny of the Caenogastropoda (Mollusca), based on comparative morphology. Arquivos de Zoologia 42 (4): 161–323.

[W78] West, D. L. 1978. Reproductive biology of Colus stimpsoni (Prosobranchia: Buccinidae). I. Male genital system. Veliger 20 (3): 266–273.

[WG71] Wilson, B. R., & K. Gillett. 1971. Australian Shells: illustrating and describing 600 species of marine gastropods found in Australian waters. A. H. & A. W. Reed: Sydney.

Last updated: 12 June 2021.