A REVIEW OF THE VOLUTIDAE 



29 



Alcithoe larochel Marwlck I926 

 (Unflgured) 



Alcithoe larochei Marwlck: Trans, New Zea- 

 land Inst., vol. 56, p. 294, pi. 63, 

 fig. 6, 1926. Powell: Shell Fish New 

 Zealand, p. 8I, species IO87, 1937. 



Alt. 98, diam, 46 mm. 



Hab. Off Opotlkl, New Zealand, 30 fathoms. 



Shell large and strong, broadly 

 fusiform. Spire conic, one-third length of 

 aperture. Nucleus scaphelloid, of about 

 two and one-half rather worn whorls, apex 

 flattened, last turn with indications of 

 blunt axials and fine spirals. Postembry- 

 onlc whorls five, convex on spire with flat- 

 tened steep shoulder; body Inflated, con- 

 tracting fairly quickly to large well- 

 defined fasclole bounded by ridge. Sculp- 

 ture: first three whorls with about eight- 

 een rather low curved axial ribs, later 

 ones slightly angled, last two whorls 

 smooth except for strong growth-lines. 

 Aperture large, dilated, deeply notched 

 below. Outer lip lightly convex, thickened, 

 reflexed, ascending high on penultimate 

 whorl. Columella with four strong folds. 

 Inner lip thin, spread well out from aper- 

 ture, not raised in fasciolar region. 



According to Marwlck the holotype 

 (later deposited in the Auckland Museum) 

 was forwarded to him by W. La Roche of Auck- 

 land. It resembles Pachymelon lutea Watson 

 at first sight, but is easily distinguished 

 by the deep anterior notch and the differ- 

 ent outline of the spire. The species is 

 closely related to Alcithoe sualnsoni but 

 is more squat. A specimen from Castle- 

 cliff in the Geological Survey of New Zea- 

 land collection is fairly close to A. 

 larochei , but is less inflated and has a 

 small pad on the fasclole. 



Alcithoe perplicata (Hedley) 1902 

 (Plate 9, Figure 68) 



Voluta perplicata Hedley, Rec. Australian 

 Mus., vol. k, number 7, p. 309, fig. 23, 

 1902. 



Alt. 75, diam. 32 mm. 



Hab. Either near the Great Barrier Reef or 



on one of the Atolls of the Coral Sea. 



Shell broadly fusiform, concave be- 

 neath the suture, angled at the shoulder, 

 tapering to the base, solid, glossy; 

 ground color white, with numerous, distant, 

 waved, narrow longitudinal orange lines; 

 about nine longitudinal ribs, terminating 

 suddenly in blunt tubercles on the shoulder, 

 these tubercles continued on the upper 

 whorls; whorls six, of which three consti- 

 tute the nucleus, the latter oblique to the 

 axis of the remainder and causing the first 

 adult whorl to be more immersed at one side; 

 aperture narrow, columella with six plaits, 

 becoming smaller posteriorly. 



Related to A . thatcheri McCoy. It 

 resembles that species in the remarkable 

 multiplication of the columellar plaits and 

 in general size, shape and color-pattern 

 with narrow, flexuous stripes. 



Alcithoe ponsonbyi (Edgar A. Smith) I9OI 

 (Plate 9, Figure 71) 



Voluta ponsonbyi Edgar A. Smith, Proc. Mai. 

 Soc. London, vol. 4, p. 23I, figured 

 same page, I9OI. 



Alt. 57, diam. 29 mm, 



Hab. Ten miles off Durban, Natal, in hO 

 fathoms , 



Nucleus consisting of two, convex 

 whorls, hardly distinguishable in color 

 from the remainder of the shell; post- 

 nuclear whorls three, strongly shouldered, 

 forming twelve short nodules upon the body 

 whorl and spire, the interspaces rounded, 

 spire turrited; spiral striae most ap- 

 parent between the shoulder and suture; 

 three indistinct anterior plaits and a few 

 feeble posterior ones; ground color cream, 

 overlaid upon the spire with almost uni- 

 form yellowish-rose color; below the per- 

 iphery upon the body whorl, six bands of 

 the same yellowish-rose color, with touches 

 of orange upon them, the interspaces cov- 

 ered with an irregular pattern of yellow 

 and brown; extremities of nodules touched 

 with dark brown; canal very short, inner 

 lip touched with color inside the termina- 

 tions of the bands. 



Holotype in the British Museum; 

 present description and figure taken from 



