Stellaria testigera

Stellaria testigera Temporal range: Miocene - Pliocene PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
A view of a fossil shell of Stellaria testigera
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Caenogastropoda clade Hypsogastropoda clade Littorinimorpha
Superfamily:	Xenophoroidea
Family:	Xenophoridae
Genus:	Stellaria
Species:	S. testigera
Binomial name
Stellaria testigera (Bronn, 1831)
Synonyms[1]
Phorus testigerus Bronn, 1831 Xenophora (Stellaria) testigera (Bronn, 1831)

Stellaria testigera, common name finger carrier shell, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Xenophoridae, the carrier shells.[1]

Subspecies

• Stellaria testigera profunda Ponder, 1983
• Stellaria testigera digitata Martens, 1878

Distribution

Stellaria testigera profunda is present in the Gulf of Aden and in North East Africa,[2] while Stellaria testigera digitata can be found in Senegal and Western Africa.[3]

Description

Shells of Stellaria testigera profunda can reach a size of 45–80 millimetres (1.8–3.1 in),[2] while in Stellaria testigera digitata they can reach 50–75 millimetres (2.0–3.0 in).[3] These shells are characterized by the expanded peripherical flange, the presence of digitations and the smooth dorsal surface.[4][5]

Fossil record

Fossils of Stellaria testigera are found in marine strata from the Miocene to Pliocene (age range: from 20.43 to 3.6 million years ago.). Fossils are known from Italy, Denmark and Slovakia.[6] These mollusks lived in the Mediterranean and spread to the Atlantic Africa and the Gulf of Aden.[4][7]

References

1. Stellaria testigera (Bronn, 1831). WoRMS (2010). Stellaria testigera (Bronn, 1831). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=468050 on 9 July 2010 .
2. S. t. profunda at Gastropods
3. S.t. digitata at Gastropods
4. Sven N. Nielsen, T. J. DeVries Tertiary Xenophoridae (Gastropoda) of western South America The Nautilus. - Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum - American Malacologists, Inc. - Delaware Museum of Natural History. v.116:no.1-3 (2002) Page 75
5. Stromboidea
6. Paleobiology Database
7. Storia della specie Stellaria testigera

• Kreipl K. & Alf A. (1999). Recent Xenophoridae. Conchbooks, Hackenheim > Germany. 148pp.