Alvania beani

(Hanley in Thorpe, 1844)

Description (shell):
Shell slightly transparent, markedly cyrtoconoid, with up to seven rather flat-sided whorls; sutures deep. Sculpture of straplike costae and spiral striae producing conspicuous, rather rectangular, reticulations. Aperture pear-shaped, outer lip with well-developed varix crossed by spiral striae, internally thickened and ridged in mature shells; inner lip reflected over umbilical region leaving only slight groove; no umbilicus (A. beani-protoconch).

Size:
Up to 3.5 x 2 mm.

Colour:
Pale orange or cream, often with two darker spiral bands on body whorl (A. beani-photo).

Animal:
Body similar to Manzonia crassa ; metapodial tentacle trilobed.

Habitat:
On weeds and stones in sediment-rich areas; sublittoral to 50 m (deeper in south of its range), but occasionally encountered at LWST.

Distribution:
Not uncommon. Distributed from Canary Islands and Mediterranean to northern Norway (Distr. A. beani).

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