Alvania testae Aradas & Maggiore 1844

Alvania testae (Aradas & Maggiore, 1844)

Fig. 13 j–l

Rissoa testae Aradas & Maggiore, 1844 (p. 135).

Rissoa abyssicola Forbes in Forbes & Hanley, 1850 (p. 86, pl. 78, figs. 1–2; pl. J, fig. 3). Alvania (Actonia) testae Aradas sp.— Seguenza 1903 (p. 54).

Turbona (Actonia) testae (Aradas & Maggiore, 1844) — Nordsieck 1972 (p. 186, pl. 7, fig. 21). Turbona (Actonia) abyssicola (Forbes, 1853) — Nordsieck 1972 (p. 187, pl. 8, fig. 3). Alvania testae (Aradas e Maggiore)— Di Geronimo & Panetta 1973 (p. 77).

Alvania abyssicola (Forbes, 1850) — Fretter & Graham 1978 (p. 188, figs. 162–164); Poppe & Goto 1991 (p. 100, pl. 12, fig. 13).

Alvania testae (Aradas & Maggiore, 1844) —Barash & Danin 1982 (p. 53); Warén 1996 (p. 222, fig. 18E); Repetto et al. 2005 (p. 119, mid left fig.).

Alvania (Alvania) testae (Aradas and Maggiore) — Ponder 1984 (p. 37, figs. 88 A–B).

Alvania testae (Aradas and Maggiore, 1843) — Poppe & Goto 1991 (p. 102, pl. 12, fig. 18).

Alvania (Alvania) testae (Aradas & Maggiore, 1844) — Cossignani et al. 1992 (fig. 73).

Alvania testae (Aradas and Maggiore, 1844) — Oliverio et al. 1993 (p. 251, pl. 1, figs. 1–3).

Alvania testae (Aradas y Maggiore, 1843)— Giribet & Peñas 1997 (p. 62, figs. 7, 9, 10).

Diagnostic characters. Conical, slightly cyrtoconoid shell; ovate aperture; moderately thick labial varix; imperforated base; commarginal ribs and superimposed spiral cordlets forming a squarish reticulated pattern; small nodules at the intersections of ribs and spirals. Protoconch: conical; 2.5 whorls; diameter about 290 µm (protoconch I: 130 µm); height about 230 µm; first whorl (protoconch I) with spiral lines forming a polygonal pattern adapically; subsequent whorls (protoconch II) with sparse granules adapically, widely spaced oblique bars medially and irregular spiral threads abapically; transition to the teleoconch marked by a sinuous lip.

Remarks. Alvania abyssicola (Forbes, 1850) is currently regarded as a junior synonym (CLEMAM 2016; WoRMS 2016). The closely related A. subsoluta (Aradas, 1847) differs in having a larger (about 400 µm) and differently scupltured protoconch of the lecitotrophic type (cf. Oliverio et al. 1993).

Occurrence. Box-corer sample BC72 (5 specimens); cores BC05 (3), BC21 (2), BC72 (1). Maximum height: 2.5 mm.

Distribution and habitat. The species ranges from northern Norway to Morocco (to 31° N) and the Mediterranean, as far East as Israel; it dwells on mud, sand, clay and coral rubble in the 15–1085 m bathymetric interval, occasionally deeper (Panetta 1971; Fretter & Graham 1978; Barash & Danin 1982; Warén 1996; Giribet & Peñas 1997; Petersen 2004). It is present in the VP biocoenosis (Di Geronimo et al. 1982; Della Bella & Tabanelli 2004).

Fossil record. Pliocene of Northern Italy (Della Bella & Tabanelli 2004; Ceregato et al. 2007; Tabanelli 2008); Pliocene and Pleistocene of Sicily (Seguenza 1903).