Posted: Apr 8 2007
Petaloconchus sp. A, Redfern #214
We have found this shell previously at Port Canaveral, Brevard County, Florida. Recently, I found another at the Jupiter Inlet jetty (Palm Beach County). The following specimen is 4.5 mm in diameter across the base and 4 mm high from the base to the top of the upright; apertural diameter 0.9 mm. Note the encircling sculpture of distinct ridges that fade out on the upright section.
Upon reviewing the above photos first Harry Lee and then Colin Redfern noted that this species has a distinctive cylindrical protoconch if I was to look closely at the base of the shell. So, here's what I found when I looked more closely. The first photo is the "tucked in" protoconch of another specimen from Jupiter Inlet. The second one is of a more extended specimen from Port Canaveral, Florida.