Gyroscala commutata (Monterosato, 1877)
Caribbean Sea to Lesser Antilles; Svalbard, Iceland and Sea of Barents to southern Africa and Mascarenhas; Azores to Mediterranean; Red Sea. W. Pacific. Predator and parasit on sea-anemones and corals in the upper infralittoral.

Original taxon: Scalaria commutata. Synonym: lamellosa.
A large specimen from Kassándra peninsula, Chalkidiki, Central Macedonia, N. Greece. 25,5mm. Original pictures provided by W. Fischer (AT) – (CC BY-NC-SA).
Scala commutata in W. Kobelt: Iconographie der schalentragenden europäischen Meeresconchylien vol. III, Cassel 1905, plates LXII & LXIII. The radials are slightly prosocline to orthocline.
2m deep, in sand near Anemona, Marbella, Málaga, Andalucia, S.  Spain. 26mm. The colour of the body is variable. Notice the spiral crest thant runs around the basis, crossing the lamellae.
The epithet lamellosa used by Lamark in 1822 was preoccupied by Brocchi (1814) for a different shell. This is the reason why Monterosato proposed the replacement name commutata.

Above: a specimen from Mozambique Channel.
Shoreline, southern coast of Mayotte, Comores. 20mm.
In shallow water, Mazarrón, Murcia, S. Spain.
Original picture provided by I. Mulero (ES).
– (CC BY-NC-SA) –

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