PROSOBRANCHIATA. 157 



Shell ovate, very ventricoss, much attenuated and deeply notched in front; spire 

 elevated ; apex pointed. The whorls, six or seven, longitudinally ribbed, transversely 

 furrowed ; ribs numerous and sharp in young specimens, more distant and rounded in 

 mature shells, and crowned with a double row of erect, sharp, nearly equal spines ; 

 the furrows, which are rather distant and regular, extend up to the front row of spines, 

 but in fully formed shells often become obliterated over the posterior part of the last 

 whorl. A narrow flat border runs round the whorls between the suture and the second 

 row of spines, and the space between the two rows is concave. The outer lip is thin, 

 sharp, and quite smooth within ; the inner lip is not much spread out, and does not 

 extend backwards beyond the suture ; the columella, which is slightly curved, presents 

 three folds. 



This shell so closely resembles V. Solandri that it may, perhaps with greater pro- 

 priety, be regarded as a dwarf variety of that species, rather than as being distinct from 

 it. It is, however, more ventricose, with a longer spire and more nearly equal spines ; 

 the inner lip is less spread over the ventral surface of the body whorl, and the notch is 

 not so deep. 



The species occurs in abundance at HighclifF, but in the specimens from that 

 locality the spines are blunt, almost nodiform, and the furrows more numerous. The same 

 variety occurs at Alum Bay, and occasionally, though rarely, at Barton. 



Size. — Axis, 1 and 2-10ths of an inch nearly; diameter, 7-10ths of an inch. 



Localities. — Barton, Highcliff, Alum Bay (Strat. No. 29, Prestwich). 



No. 95. Voluta recticosta. Sowerby. Tab. XX, fig. 3. 



Voluta kecticosta. Sow. 1850. Dixon's Geol., &c, of Suss., p. 188 ; t. 5, fig. 18. 



V. testa ovato-oblongd, costatd, transversim sulcata, anlice subrostratd, parum emargi- 

 natd ; spird mediocri apice acuto ; anfractibus ventricosis, duplici serie spinarum coronatis ; 

 spatio inter series spinarum concavo ; costis numerosis, rectis, tenuibus, primam seriem 

 spinarum gerentibus ; labro tenui. 



Shell oval-oblong, ribbed, transversely furrowed ; spire moderately elevated, ter- 

 minating in a small pointed apex ; whorls ventricose, contracted rather suddenly in 

 front, so as to give a beak-like form to the base, crowned with two not very distant rows 

 of short, erect, sharp spines ; ribs numerous, thin, straight, scarcely extending beyond 

 the middle of the whorl, and each terminating in a spine ; the margins of the whorls 

 between the two rows of spines concave. The outer lip thin, sharp edged, and smooth 

 within. The basal furrows are strongly marked, and extend higher up the whorl 

 than is usually the case. The notch in front is not deep. 



The figure is taken from the original specimen described and figured by Mr. 

 Sowerby ; this specimen, which forms part of Mr. Dixon's collection, is unfortunately 

 somewhat crushed and distorted. No traces of the inner lip remain, and the aperture 



