226 PNEUMONOBRANCHIATA. 



Inhab. clefts of rocks near the high-water marks, and 

 in the mud left bare by the tide at the mouth of rivers. 



Animal purplish. 



The habits of the animal are very like those of 

 Limrueus fossarius and palustris, which are sometimes 

 found occupying the same situations a little distance 

 up the river that these animals do at its mouth. 



This shell was first recorded as British by Boys, 

 who found it in the marshes near Faversham, at the 

 roots of rushes. It has usually been considered as 

 the A. myosotis of Draparnaud, but that has no teeth 

 on the outer lip. 



This species varies considerably ; 1. In size; 2. 

 In colour, from purplish brown to brownish, while 

 some are also very rarely found nearly hyaline ; 3. 

 In the length of the spire and in the ventricoseness of 

 the volutions. The mouth is generally strongly 

 toothed ; but sometimes it is nearly smooth. These 

 variations induced Dr. Turton, in his Dictionary, to 

 divide it into three species. 



Mr. Lowe doubts the propriety of referring Valuta 

 denticulata to the genus Melampus, because he thinks 

 that it has a periostraca, which, he believes, the other 

 wants ; but the fact is, they all have it, and in this 

 species it is only rather thicker than in the others. 

 (ZooL Journ. iv. 291.) 



Montagu (Test. Brit.) and Miller (Ann. Phil. iii. 

 577.) truly describe the apex of the shell as being 

 destitute of any septa. 



Mr. Jeffreys suspected that Voluta hyalina Mon- 

 tagu was only an imperfect specimen of this species : 

 Montagu's specimen is a foreign marine shell not yet 

 arrived at its full growth. 



