138 THE NAUTILUS. 



NOTE ON THE MARGINELLA VARIA OF SOWEKBY. 



BY J. R. LE B. TOMLIN. 



This species was originally described in the Proc. Zool. Soc. 

 Lond. 1846, p. 97 (not p. 47 as stated by 1 Redfield) and 

 figured the same year in the Thesaurus vol. I, p. 390, pi. 76, 

 figs. 137-141. Sowerby gives the W. Indies and Belieze (sic) 

 as localities, but there is no clue as to his types. 



There can be no doubt, however, that, of his four figures, 

 138, 139 and 140 represent three color varieties of the ubiqui- 

 tous West Indian M. avena Kiener (ex Valenciennes MS.), 

 while fig. 141 as obviously depicts M. albolineata Orb. This 

 has been generally recognized, as for example by Redfield, 

 Jousseaume and Try on. 



The name varia Sow., has, however, for many years prob- 

 ably on Carpenter's initiative been 2 applied to a well-known 

 Californian shell. 



Tryon s indeed considers that this West Coast species is iden- 

 tical with albolineata Orb. from the West Indies, but I have no 

 hesitation in rejecting this identification, and I do not think 

 that it has ever found much evidence. The specimen which 

 he figures is the true albolineata Orb. 



I wondered at one time whether * M. J'asciata Sow. could be 

 the west-coast shell, but a careful study of the description and 

 figure leads me unhesitatingly to endorse Tryon' s surmise and 

 to refer it to M. mustelina Angas. M. fasciata Sow. (rubrifasciata 

 Jouss.*) was described from unknown locality on "specimens 

 in the British Museum," but the types are no longer there and 

 are presumably lost. 



I propose, therefore, to give the name of M. californica to the 

 Californian species which has so long passed as varia Sow. 



The type specimen, which is in my own collection, may be 



1 Amer. Journ. Conch. VI, p. 244. 

 Cf. Keep's West Coast Shells, p. 43. 

 * Manual, vol. V, p. 55, pi. 13, f. 37. 

 4 Thesaurus, vol. I, p. 389, pi. 76, f. 142. 

 4 Rev. et Mag. de Zool., 1875, p. 221. 



