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.
Beaded Periwinkle
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Cenchritis muricatus
Class:
Order:
Family:
Gastropoda
Littorinimorpha
Littorinidae
Shell Information
Length (mm): 15-25
Dextral
Chirality:
The Beaded Periwinkle has about 7 shell whorls leading to a relatively sharp apex. The shell is sculpted by 4-5 spiral rows of small knobs. It is white to yellow-gray in color.
Description:
Ecological Information
Distribution:
Depth (m):
Florida to the Caribbean Sea
-9 to 0 meters
Diet:
Herbivore
Habitat:
Marine and Terrestrial; Rocky intertidal zone
Misc. Facts
Also sometimes called the knobby periwinkle.
Citations
MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Cenchritis muricatus (Linnaeus, 1758). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=419557 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., F. Moretzsohn, and E. F. Garc�a. 29. Gastropoda (Mollusca) of the Gulf of Mexico, Pp. 579�699 in Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico�Origins, Waters, and Biota. Biodiversity. Texas A&M University Press, College Station, Texas.