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Enlay
Enlay There is a beautiful variant in adult Erronea errones (Linnaeus) in which the spotted uppermost layer of enamel is entirely absent so that the trizonate dorsum is vividly sky-blue to greyish blue, often showing fine longitudinal paler lines; the unspotted white to yellowish lateral and marginal callus is developed as in typical adult E. errones, but the two anterior terminal spots seem to be always absent.
In other spotted species, the absence of dorsal markings is very rare and evidently pathological (see Sean Raynon Sabado no. 94, p. 1), but in E. errones it is rather frequent, though restricted to populations living around Broome in West Australia. The center in frequency of this variant evidently is the muddy Fatimas Reef about 4 miles south of Broome; but according to large sets of E. errones presented to me by Mr. A. Kalnins (Maylands, W. A.) the blue variant spreads to the less muddy reef Black Ledge (about 2 miles south of Fatimas: 5 percent of the population) as well as to the rocky Gantheaume Point (5 miles north of Broome 1 percent) and even to Quandong (about 20 miles north of Broome: 2 percent), but it seems to be totally absent at Willie Creek (about 35 miles north of Broome) as well as in all populations of the Exmouth Gulf area and the Darwin area; in fact, I had never seen such an unspotted blue adult E. errones among almost five thousand shells coming from other localities of the Indo-Pacific, until I received the populations from Broome.
Therefore the unspotted E. errones from the Broome area evidently constitute a mutation: the blue shells are found in small percentages among spotted specimens (often of dark hue); there are evidently no intermediates (i.e. no shells with the spots scattered or restricted to small portions of the dorsum); the blue shells are restricted to an area of about 25 miles; and their occurrence evidently is independent of environmental conditions. All specimens have been live-collected. This mutation will be described in detail as a new E. subspecies in a paper on the variability of E. errones prepared for The Veliger; it is very interesting as it seems to point to the evolution of unspotted species allied to spotted ones, e.g. of Lyncina carneola from L. vitellus.
The present preliminary note should stimulate collectors to contact the writer about similar shells or related observations.
Tom Richert found a good way to end the old year and start the new. He collected a beautiful specimen of five inch Cymatium pyrum from 40 feet of water off the Ala Wai entrance buoy.
Habitat, hard coral bottom with some coral rubble. Also collected there were two C. clandestinum. This may be the first living C. pyrum collected in Philippine waters. Others collected (less than half a dozen) have been crabbed, I believe.
Rick Mayor collected Polinices simiae (Deshayes) off Kahe Point in 12 feet of water.
Enlay Few specimens of C. rashleighana are known outside Philippines, so checking was not too difficult. Those in the Dautzenberg collection were graciously brought out by Dr. W. Adams from trays in their magnificent new museum in Brussels, Belgium. Two specimens were from Lifu and 2 from New Caledonia. These 4 specimens were all subadult so much so that positive identification was not possible. There was spotting on the columellar base of the larger specimen from each area. The general shape of 3 was that of our short fat variation and were probably C. rashleighana since 2 of them, even though subadult, also had a columellar callus. One was too young to identify by any criteria. All 4 were much smaller than our Philippine specimens. This visit convinced me that identification of an adult sea shell based on comparison to these 4 would be risky indeed.
The museum in Cardiff, Wales, was visited, since Melvill's type was deposited there. It was carefully studied and was typical C. rashleighana as I had come to know it. It was approximately 18mm in length. It was the same shape as our plump variation, with the same dorsal pattern. There was a heavy sharp columellar marginal callus. There were 5 small discrete brownish spots on the labial and 10 on the columellar base, extending more than half way to the aperture. There was no locality data. There were 2 others from Lifu Island and, believe it or not, 6 dredged subfossils from Philippines!
It should be noted that there was no consistent difference of number of teeth or other characteristics between the Pacific and Philippine C. rashleighana. I have been unable to note any constant difference between the count or character of the teeth of C. rashleighana and C. teres. This is in contrast to C. subteres which is specifically separated by its finer labial teeth, the sharp thin labial margin, and the more produced posterior extremity.
Just why Melvill failed to record the truly specific characteristics present on his type, and subsequently clearly illustrated, probably never will be known. Be that as it may, there was no longer doubt in my mind about the conchological characteristics of his C. rashleighana. The specimens in the British Museum further confirmed my convictions.
While in Cardiff, I also examined Melvill's types of Cypraea latior. I believe I can now properly place this sea shell. The types were in every characteristic exactly similar to the large ovate variation of C. teres which are found in Philippines - particularly on the reef at Fort Kamehameha, Oahu. Therefore my discussion in the Philippine Shell News January 1962 was in error. Cypraea latior Melvill should become a synonym of Cypraea teres Gmelin.
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