TURBINELLA. 
PLATE V. 
Species 25. (Mus, Taylor.) 
TURBINELLA pPRiIsMaTIcA. Turd. testé ovato-turritd, 
crassi, basi in canalem brevem subrecurvum terminata ; 
anfractibus longitudinaliter plicato-costatis, transversim 
subtilissimé striatis, liris brevibus elevatis conspicuis 
super costas; albidd, liris interruptis nigricantibus, 
plus minusve irridescentibus, intus crocata. 
THE PRISMATIC TURBINELLA. Shell ovately turreted, 
thick, terminating at the base in a short slightly 
recurved canal; whorls longitudinally plicately ribbed, 
transversely very finely striated, with short conspi- 
cuous elevated ridges upon the ribs; whitish, inter- 
rupted ridges blackish, more or less irridescent, 
interior saffron yellow. 
Buccinum prismaticum, Martyn, Univ. Conch. vol. i. pl. 2. 
Hab. Friendly Islands; Martyn. 
The Turbinella prismatica has been singularly overlooked 
by modern authors, I find no mention of it by Lamarck, 
Deshayes, or Kiener, nor is there any representation of it 
in the ‘Conchylien Cabinet’ or ‘Encyclopédie Méthodique’; 
it is, however, a shell of great rarity, and the species may 
possibly now have become altogether extinct. 
The exquisite drawing published by our countryman, 
Martyn, in 1784, is taken from a much finer example of 
the species than I have had the pleasure of seeing, and it 
is not improbable but that the irridescent hue is somewhat 
exaggerated for the sake of making this peculiarity mani- 
fest ; still, in the specimens before me from Mr. Taylor’s 
and Mr. Cuming’s collections, particularly in one from the 
former, a beautiful prismatic display of colours appears 
both on the transverse ridges and in the interstices next 
the sutures. Without reference to this peculiarity, the 
T. prismatica is amply distinguished from any other species 
by its black interrupted transverse ridges. 
Species 26. (Mus. Cuming.) 
TURBINELLA CAsTANEA. Turd. testi lanceolato-fusiformi, 
anfractibus longitudinaliter peculiariter rude plicato- 
costatis, costis obliquis levibus vel obsolete striatis, 
canali spiraliter lirato ; rufescente-aurantid, epider- 
mide corned vivide castaned polité induti. 
THE CHESNUT TURBINELLA. Shell lanceolately fusi- 
form, whorls longitudinally peculiarly rudely plicately 
ribbed, ribs oblique, smooth or obsoletely striated, 
canal spirally ridged; reddish-orange, covered with 
a polished horny bright chesnut epidermis. 
Hab. Panama (in the crevices of rocks); Cuming. 
Tn the ‘ Conchologia Systematica’ I figured this species 
as the Turbinella acuminata, Gray, in Supplement to Wood’s 
‘Index Testaceologicus, but in making a more extended 
comparison of specimens for the present monograph, I 
find it to be uniformly distinct and not a modification of 
that species. The 7. castanea is mainly distinguished by 
the peculiar rude oblique growth of the longitudinal ribs, 
smooth surface, and deep chesnut epidermis; whilst in 
the 7. acuminata the plicated ribs are straighter, and 
the shell is neatly corded throughout with fine ridges. 
Species 27. (Mus. Cuming.) 
TURBINELLA NopATA. Twurb. testd elongato-fusiformi, 
spird turritd, levigatd, canali spiraliter lirato, liris 
distantibus ; anfractibus superne impressis, medio tuber- 
culis grandibus levibus tumidis obtusis cingulatis ; 
aurantio-fulvd, epidermide tenui corned induté, intus 
pulcherrime rosea. 
THE KNOBBED TURBINELLA. Shell elongately fusiform, 
spire turreted, smooth, canal spirally ridged, ridges 
distant ; whorls impressed round the upper part, 
encircled round the middle with large smooth obtuse 
swollen tubercles; orange-fulvous, covered with a 
thin horny epidermis, interior beautifully rose-tinted. 
Desnayes, Anim. sans vert. vol. iv. p. 389. 
Buccinum nodatum, Martyn. 
Murex nodatus, Gmelin, Dillwyn. 
Turbinella rigida, Gray. 
Murex rigidus, Wood. 
Hab. Panama (in crevices of rocks at low water); Cuming. 
An interesting and well-defined species from the same 
locality as the preceding, unknown to Lamarck, though 
figured long before the publication of the ‘ Animaux sans 
vertébres’, by Martyn, in his beautiful portfolio of drawings 
entitled ‘Universal Conchology’. The great scarcity of 
this work may afford some allowance for Mr. Gray having 
overlooked the figure referred to when introducing this 
species under a new name, both in the Supplement to 
Wood’s ‘Index Testaceologicus’ and in the ‘ Zoology of 
Beechey’s Voyage of the Blossom’; and the same excuse 
may be offered for my having repeated the error when 
naming this shell in the ‘ Conchologia Systematica.’ 
July, 1847. 
