Amoria undulata
Amoria undulata, common name wavy volute, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Volutidae, the volutes.
Synonyms
Amoria undulata Amoria kingi Cox, 1871Scaphella moslemica Hedley, 1912Voluta angasii Sowerby II, 1864Voluta australiae Voluta kingi J. C. Cox, 1871 junior subjective synonymVoluta sclateri Cox, 1869Voluta undulata Lamarck, 1804
Distribution
This marine species is endemic to Australia and occurs off New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia.
Description
The shell exhibits an elongated, fusiform shape and reaches lengths between 60 and 120 mm. It is characterized by a smooth, solid, and roundly shouldered profile, culminating in a long, pointed, conical spire. The suture displays a calloused edge. The aperture is elongated and displays a salmon to orange coloration. The outer lip is smooth and thickened in adult specimens. The base color of the external shell surface is fawn or white-cream, adorned with thin, axial, wavy brown lines. The foot exhibits similar coloration with zigzag lines and stripes.
Habitat
These sea snails live intertidally on sand and mud, at depths of 9 to 503 m. They live in deeper waters in their northern range. They emerge only at night to feed.
Biology
These gastropods are carnivore, mainly feeding on other sea snails. In the spring Amoria undulata migrates from deep water to shallow water sandbanks to breed. It lays egg masses similar to a hollow cylinder, with a diameter of. The embryos hatch as well developed juveniles and crawl away.