Episcomitra Monterosato 1917
Creators: name: Harzhauser, Mathias
name: Landau, Bernard
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Mollusca
Gastropoda
Neogastropoda
Mitridae
Episcomitra

description: Genus Episcomitra Monterosato, 1917
Type species. Mitra zonata Marryat, 1818, by monotypy. Present-day, Mediterranean Sea.
Diagnosis. “ Shell small to large (15–110 mm), fusiform or elongate-fusiform, smooth, with well-developed periostracum. Protoconch large, paucispiral, cyrtoconoid, of about two smooth glossy convex whorls. Spire tall or rather low; suture impressed. Spire whorls evenly convex in outline, sculpture represented by fine, dense, collabral lines. Last adult whorl typically evenly convex with rather short siphonal canal bearing a distinct fasciole, separated from shell base by deep groove. Siphonal notch deep or rather shallow. Outer aperture lip evenly convex, or convex in its adapical portion and straight throughout most of its length. Inner aperture lip with four, fine, subequal columellar folds ” (Fedosov et al., 2018: 38).
Discussion. Landau et al. (2013) proposed a strict generic concept within Mitridae, and restricted Mitra Lamarck, 1798 to Indo-Pacific species with barbed or crenulated outer lips. European Neogene and Recent Mediterranean species with smooth lips were placed in Episcomitra Monterosato, 1917. This approach was generally confirmed by molecular data of Fedosov et al. (2018), although the Indo-Pacific “ Mitra ” turned out to be polyphyletic. Moreover, only two of the three Recent Mediterranean Mitridae are now placed in Episcomitra [E. zonata (Marryat, 1818), E. cornicula (Linnaeus, 1758)], whereas molecular data require the third species “ Mitra ” cornea Lamarck, 1811 to be placed in Isara H. & A. Adams, 1853. Fedosov et al. (2018: 291) pointed out that “ there are no morphological characters that substantially differentiate the two genera ”. Therefore, for pragmatic reasons we place most the species discussed herein in Episcomitra, except for Mitra hoernesi Mayer, 1864, which is morphologically extremely similar to Isara cornea. Morphometric data are given in Table 1.
Present-day distribution. Mediterranean Sea and West Africa (Fedosov et al. 2018).
Key to Episcomitra species in the Paratethys
1. Spiral sculpture present on later whorls.....................................................................2 Spiral sculpture restricted to early spire whorls and fasciole, or very faint on later whorls.............................5 Spiral sculpture absent, except over fasciole....................................................... E. praenigra
2. Spiral sculpture delicate................................................................................ 3 Spiral sculpture flattened bands.......................................................................... 4
3. Fine spiral sculpture on all surface.................................................................. E. bouei Fine spiral sculpture restricted to subsutural area........................................... E. antibellardii nov. sp.
4. Flat bands, narrow interspaces, shell biconic.......................................................... E. facilis Flat bands, narrow interspaces, shell fusiform.......................................... E. pseudoincognita nov. sp. Faint grooves, subobsolete, shell biconic........................................................... E. brusinae Spirals subobsolete mid-whorl on last whorl, shell shape columbellid............................ E. neubauer i nov. sp.
5. Shell large to moderately large........................................................................... 6 Shell medium to small................................................................................. 7
6. Shell large, slender, short aperture........................................................... E. missile nov. sp.
7. Shell fusiform, moderately broad to moderately slender....................................................... 8 Shell medium-sized, tall and slender fusiform with tall spire............................................. E. hilberi Shell small, tall and slender fusiform............................................................... E. pilsbryi
8. Last whorl weakly shouldered, faint spirals................................................ E. leopoldiana nov. sp. Last whorl not shouldered, no spiral sculpture, SL<30 mm .......................................... E. cochlearella Last whorl not shouldered, no spiral sculpture, SL> 30 mm ............................................ E. friedbergi
description: Published as part of Harzhauser, Mathias & Landau, Bernard, 2021, The Mitridae (Gastropoda: Neogastropoda) of the Miocene Paratethys Sea, pp. 1-72 in Zootaxa 4983 (3) on pages 7-9, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4983.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/4921887