Teremitra, Kantor, Yuri, Lozouet, Pierre, Puillandre, Nicolas & Bouchet, Philippe, 2014

Kantor, Yuri, Lozouet, Pierre, Puillandre, Nicolas & Bouchet, Philippe, 2014, Lost and found: The Eocene family Pyramimitridae (Neogastropoda) discovered in the Recent fauna of the Indo-Pacific, Zootaxa 3754 (3), pp. 239-276 : 264

Genus Teremitra new genus

Type species. Terebra efatensis Aubry, 1999 .

Diagnosis. Shell small, terebriform, narrow elongate, with very high spire and short siphonal canal. Protoconch paucispiral or multispiral up to 3+ whorls. Spiral sculpture of strong spiral cords forming beads at intersection with narrow, closely spaced, axial ribs. Last whorl 0.30–0.45 of SL. Columella with two weakly pronounced oblique folds. Operculum absent. Radula: rachidian teeth with broad base shallowly arched anteriorly and large cusp, sometimes with indistinct additional serration; high triangular lateral teeth with additional cusps on inner side.

Etymology. Apocope of Terebra and Mitra .

Locality/Age. Upper Eocene of Europe; Recent, West Pacific from Taiwan to Fiji.

Remarks. The combination of terebriform shell with a short siphonal canal, presence of columellar plaits and spiral sculpture with strong beads is unique in Pyramimitridae . The one species already named has previously been included in the Terebridae , as Terebra or Pristiterebra ( Aubry 1999; Terryn 2007; Terryn & Holford 2008), based on their superficial resemblance in shell shape. The Eocene species of Pyramimitra (see Palmer 1937, figs 12–15; Dockery 1977; herein Figs. 2 B–E, 3A–B) have an outer lip that is dentate inside, more pronounced columellar folds, a sculpture of sharp, narrow, spiral cords without beads and obtuse axial varices. The whole surface in Pyramimitra is marked with sharp axial striae. From species of Vaughanites , that also possess columellar plaits, Teremitra differs in its coarser sculpture and shorter siphonal canal deflected abaxially.

Cerithium hortense Vinassa de Regny, 1898, from the Upper Eocene of Europe, is here transfered to Teremitra .

Figures

FIGURE 2. Overview of fossil and Recent Pyramimitridae. A. Endiatoma quadricincta (Cossmann, 1883), MNHN. F. A 47757, Lower Eocene, France. B – C. Pyramimitra terebraeformis (Conrad, 1848), MNHN. F. J 08748, Middle Eocene, USA. D – E. Pyramimitra quadralirata Dockery, 1977, MNHN. F. A 47750, Middle Eocene, USA. F. Hortia priabonica n. sp., MNHN. F. A 47752, Upper Eocene, France. G. Hortia arriuensis Lozouet, 1999, MNHN. F. A 47751, Upper Oligocene, France. H. Hortia pseudotaranis n. sp., New Caledonia, SL 8.4 mm. I. Hortia macrocephala n. sp., New Caledonia, SL 10.4 mm. J. Hortia paradrillia n. sp., New Caledonia, SL 8.1 mm. K. Hortia marshalli n. sp., New Zealand, SL 10.6 mm. L. Hortia spenceri n. sp., New Zealand, SL 9.0 mm. M. Hortia aotearoa n. sp., New Zealand, SL 9.0 mm. N. Hortia solitaria n. sp., South of Madagascar, SL 6.5 mm. O. Teremitra fallax n. sp., Solomon Islands, SL 11.8 mm. P. Teremitra efatensis (Aubry, 1999), Vanuatu, SL 10.8 mm. Q. Teremitra? hortensis (Vinassa de Regny, 1898), Upper Eocene, France. R. Teremitra sp., Taiwan, SL 16 mm. S. Vaughanites? superstes n. sp., Philippines, SL 19.1 mm.