Protatlanta souleyeti (Smith, 1888)
This is the type species of the genus Protatlanta, both members of which have a calcareous shell, but a conchiolin keel.
Synonyms:
Atlanta lamanoni Gray, 1850
Atlanta lamanonii Souleyet, 1852
Atlanta sculpta var. mediterranea (Issel, 1915)
Atlanta souleyeti Smith, 1888
Protatlanta mediterranea Issel, 1915
Protatlanta sculpta var. mediterranea Issel, 1915
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Spire consists of 2½ to 3 whorls and has no ornamentation.
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Shell spire and sutures are colourless, however, the soft tissues vary in colour from white, to yellow-brown and deep brown.
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There is a single, rapidly inflating adult whorl.
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The keel is not calcareous, but composed of conchiolin. It is tall, extremely transparent and often assumed to be missing. In fossil specimens, the keel is always missing.
Similar species:
Further Reading:
Issel, R., 1911. Molluschi Eteropodi raccolti dal Capitano G. Chierchia durante il viaggio di circumnavigazione della R. Nave Vettor Pisani negli anni 18182-83-84-85. Annuario del Museo Zoologico della R. Università di Napoli, Nuova Serie 3, 1–11.
Richter, G., Seapy, R.R., 1999. Heteropoda, in: South Atlantic Zooplankton. Backhuys, Leiden, pp. 621–647.
Seapy, R.R. 2011. Atlantidae. In: Tree of life web project. Available at http://tolweb.org/Atlantidae accessed 1 April 2017.
Wall-Palmer, D., Burridge, A.K., Goetze, E., Stokvis, F., Janssen, A.W., Mekkes, L., Moreno-Alcántara, M., Bednaršek, N., Schiøtte, T., Vinther Sørensen, M., Smart, C.W., Peijnenburg, K.T.C.A. Biogeography and genetic diversity of the atlantid heteropods. Progress in Oceanography, 160:1–25. doi: 10.1016/j.pocean.2017.11.004
Wall-Palmer, D., Metcalfe, B., Leng, M.J., Sloane, H.J., Ganssen, G., Vinayachandran, P.N., Smart, C.W. Vertical distribution and diurnal migration of atlantid heteropods. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 587: 1–15. doi: 10.3354/meps12464.
Wall-Palmer, D., Burridge, A.K., Peijnenburg, K.T.C.A., Janssen, A.W., Kirby, R., Hart, M.B., Smart, C.W., 2016b. Evidence for the validity of Protatlanta sculpta (Gastropoda: Pterotracheoidea). Contributions to Zoology, 85: 423-435.
Wall-Palmer, D., Smart, C.W., Kirby, R., Hart, M.B., Peijnenburg, K.T.C.A., Janssen, A. 2016. A review of the ecology, palaeontology and distribution of atlantid heteropods (Caenogastropoda: Pterotracheoidea: Atlantidae). Journal of Molluscan Studies, 1-14.
