Triplex Perry, 1810

Houart, Roland & Héros, Virginie, 2013, Description of new Muricidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda) collected during the ATIMO VATAE expedition to Madagascar “ Deep South ”, Zoosystema 35 (4), pp. 503-523 : 506-508

Subgenus Triplex Perry, 1810

TYPE SPECIES. — Triplex foliatus Perry, 1810 (Suppressed – ICZN opinion 911 – in favour of Murex palmarosae Lamarck, 1822 ), Indo-West Pacific (by monotypy).

Chicoreus (Triplex) kantori n. sp. ( Figs 1A ; 3A ; 4 A-C; 7F)

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype (lv), MNHN 26504 and 1 paratype MNHN 26505 .

TYPE LOCALITY. — SW Cap Sainte Marie, 25°59.0’S, 44°43.3’E, 97-98 m [ ATIMO VATAE: stn DW3601].

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — ATIMO VATAE: stn CP3545, secteur de Fort-Dauphin, 25°29’S, 46°42’E, 108-110 m, 1 dd (paratype MNHN 26505). — Stn DW3601, SW Cap Sainte Marie, 25°59.0’S, 44°43.3’E, 97-98 m, 1 lv (holotype MNHN 26504).

DISTRIBUTION. — South Madagascar, live in 97-98 m, shells in 108- 110 m.

ETYMOLOGY. — This species is named after Yuri Kantor, a longtime and always cheerful and attentive friend, specialist in systematics and anatomy of neogastropods. Yuri has participated in many expeditions organized by MNHN, including ATIMO VATAE in Fort-Dauphin and on board the trawler Nosy Bé 11.

DESCRIPTION

Shell small for the subgenus, up to 19.1 mm in height at maturity (holotype). Height/width ratio 1.92 (holotype), broadly ovate, spinose, lightly built.Shoulder ramp weakly sloping, weakly convex.

Protoconch and 2 first adapical teleoconch whorls light tan, becoming darker from third whorl, fourth and fifth whorls reddish brown with slightly paler variceal spines. Aperture brown, edge white and pale brown.

Spire high with 1.45 protoconch whorls and teleoconch up to 5.2 broadly convex, weakly shouldered, spinose and nodose whorls. Suture impressed. Protoconch large, broad, whorls rounded but weakly flattened, last whorl minutely punctuate, width 1100 µm, height 900 µm. Terminal lip broad, rounded, weakly erect, almost straight.

Axial sculpture of teleoconch whorls consisting of low, narrow, nodose ribs and narrow, high, rounded, spinose varices. First whorl with eight or nine ribs, second to fourth whorl with three varices and three nodose ribs, last whorl with three varices and three to five irregularly shaped, low or very low, intervariceal ribs. Spiral sculpture of low, nodose, primary, secondary and tertiary cords and narrow lirae, almost indistinguishable between penultimate and last (apertural) varix. First whorl with P1-P3 or P1-P4, second with P1, s1, P2, P3, P4, beginning of IP, third with IP, adis, P1, s1, P2, s2, P3, P4, fourth with adis, IP, abis, P1, s1, P2, s2, P3, s3, P4 and several additional narrow threads, last whorl with adis, IP, abis, P1, s1, P2, s2, P3, s3, P4, s4, P5, s5, P6, s6, ADP, ads, MP, ms, ABP, abs and additional threads on shoulder ramp, convex part of last whorl and siphonal canal. P1, P3, P5 and MP giving rise to moderately long, narrow, weakly frondose, narrowly open spines on axial varices, P2, P4 and P6 narrow with very short, broadly open spinelets.

Aperture moderately small, ovate. Columellar lip narrow, flaring, smooth, rim partially erect, adherent on small portion at adapical extremity. Anal notch shallow, broad. Outer lip erect, smooth with five weak, low, elongate denticles within: ID, D1-D5. Siphonal canal long, narrow, strongly abaxially bent, narrowly open with a single short spine extending from MP.

Operculum and animal not examined.

REMARKS

Chicoreus (Triplex) kantori n. sp. can be separated immediately from all other Triplex species by having three narrow, very weakly frondose spines, extending from P1, P3 and P5 on the axial varices, by the small weakly adapically curved spine extending from MP and by the strongly abaxially bent siphonal canal. Chicoreus (T.) crosnieri Houart, 1985 ( Fig. 4 D-E) is comparatively larger with broader and higher intervariceal axial nodes, more strongly frondose and more numerous variceal spines, usually extending from P1, P3, P5 and P6, P2 and P4 being very narrow and only in very few specimens extending as very short, narrow variceal spines, otherwise spineless. The siphonal canal is straighter and bears a relatively long spine, extending from MP and a shorter one from ABP, both strongly bent abapically. Chicoreus (T.) zululandensis Houart, 1989 ( Fig. 4F ) differs in having a relatively larger and more rounded protoconch and also in having more numerous variceal spines and a straighter siphonal canal with weakly curved, abapically bent spines:ADP,MP, ABP. Chicoreus (T.) boucheti Houart, 1983 , C. (T.) paucifrondosus Houart, 1988 and C. (T.) subpalmatus Houart, 1988 from New Caledonia also have a strongly abaxially bent siphonal canal as observed in C. (T.) kantori n. sp. rather than the straight canal of other Triplex species , but they differ by many other shell characters and do not need to be compared further here.

Figures

FIG. 1. — Distribution of the six new species described herein: A, Chicoreus (Triplex) kantori n. sp.; B, Naquetia manwaii n. sp.; C, Dermomurex (Dermomurex) charlesi n. sp.; D, Favartia (Favartia) tantelyi n. sp.;E, Favartia (Pygmaepterys) fournierae n. sp.; F, Semiricinula bozzettii n. sp. Symbols: Ê, type locality; £, other occurences.

FIG. 3. — Spiral cords morphology: A, Chicoreus (Triplex) kantori n. sp. (holotype), 19.1 mm; B, Naquetia manwaii n. sp. (holotype), 34 mm; C, Semiricinula bozzettii n. sp. (holotype), 16 mm; D, E, Favartia (Pygmaepterys) fournierae n. sp.; D, Holotype, 10.2 mm; E, Paratype MNHN 26519, 8.4 mm. Abbreviations: see Material and methods.

FIG. 4. — A-C, Chicoreus (Triplex) kantori n. sp.; A, B, holotype MNHN 26504, 19.1 mm; C, paratype MNHN 26505, 17.6 mm; D, E, Chicoreus (Triplex) crosnieri Houart, 1985, ATIMO VATAE: stn CP3521, MNHN, 40.3 mm; F, Chicoreus (Triplex) zululandensis Houart, 1989, holotype NM D8049, 31 mm (photo courtesy A. Marais); G-J, Naquetia manwaii n. sp.; G, H, holotype MNHN 26506, 34 mm; I, J, paratype, MNHN 26510, 23 mm; K-M, Naquetia vokesae (Houart, 1986); K, Zanzibar, West of Stone Own, 38.9 mm, RH; L, M, ATIMO VATAE: stn TB08, 14.8 mm (juvenile), MNHN; N, O, Chicomurex turschi (Houart, 1981), Papua New Guinea, Hansa Bay, off Durangit, 45-60 m, 36 mm, paratype RH.