Columbella mercatoria (West Indies dove snail) (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands) 1

Description:

Summary[edit] Description: English: Columbella mercatoria (Linnaeus, 1758) - West Indies dove snail shell (modern) (abapertural view) The gastropods (snails & slugs) are a group of molluscs that occupy marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments. Most gastropods have a calcareous external shell (the snails). Some lack a shell completely, or have reduced internal shells (the slugs & sea slugs & pteropods). Most members of the Gastropoda are marine. Most marine snails are herbivores (algae grazers) or predators/carnivores. This is a beachworn West Indies dove snail, Columbella mercatoria. The dove snails are in the Family Columbellidae - columbellid gastropods occupy seagrass beds and rubbly seafloors. Their feeding style ranges from algae grazing to predation to scavenging. Classification: Animalia, Mollusca, Gastropoda, Columbellidae Locality: Brewers Bay, St. Thomas, western Virgin Islands. Date: 29 September 2020, 17:08:43. Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/47445767@N05/50409201597/. Author: James St. John.