(?)Simnia aperta (Sowerby II, 1849)
Mediterranean and near Atlantic.
Predator on Octocorallia in the circalittoral and the continental shelf. Original taxon: Ovulum apertum.
Very possible senior synonym of Simnia purpurea Risso, 1826 (whose type is lost).
 
« Shell orange to brown, slender to inflated cylindrical, less glossy [than S. nicaeensis], smooth. Found on Alcyonium glomeratum. Mostly found in the Mediterranean, mainly from Italy and Croatia, at 50 to 200m, but also reported from Galicia, northwestern Spain, at 20m (Fehse et al. 2010). The exact distribution in the Atlantic is unknown. » – Lorenz & Melaun: “A new species of Simnia from England (Caenogastropoda: Ovulidae)”, Molluscan research vol. 31(3), 2011, p.170.

Above: a slender form. 120m deep, among red coral, off Alghero, Sassari, NW. Sardinia. 15mm.
Original pictures provided by M.T. Spanu (IT) – (CC BY-NC-SA).
« Testa laevigata elongato-ovali, fulva-rufescente; canalibus breviusculis; apertura aperta, labio externo tenui, antice sub-emarginata; labio interno postice ad canalem sub-reflexo, antice sub-tortuoso tenui; intus sub-depresso. » – G. B. Sowerby: Thesaurus conchyliorum vol. II - text, London 1855, p.478. Above, the species in the Thesaurus, plate CI.
 
« Of a form between that of O. triticeum, and that of secale; of a dull reddish-brown colour. In the specimen which we have, the lip is not thickened nor reflected, although it appears to be a full-grown shell; if it be so, it will form a companion to O. Patulum. » – Ibid.
Broader form. 80m deep, red coral, Lastovo island, Dubrovnik-Neretva Comitat, S. Croatia. 12,8mm. Presence of spirals in the middle of the body whorl, on ventral side. Original pictures provided by A. Nappo (IT) – (CC BY-NC-SA).
Adult. Absence of spirals on the middle of the body whorl on ventral side; yellow posterior callous. Same spot. 15,4mm. Original pictures provided by A. Nappo (IT) – (CC BY-NC-SA).

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