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+--- Thread: dwarf or juvenile ? (/showthread.php?tid=1003)
dwarf or juvenile ? - helmetapointe - 04-16-2010
Hallo,  i'm wondering if this "Turbinella pyrum" from Mannar gulf  (s.e.india), 49.5 mm; 11 gramm; is a dwarf or juvenile form.    <img src="http://s2.noelshack.com/uploads/images/6542963168247_t_p.jpg" alt="http://s2.noelshack.com/uploads/images/6542963168247_t_p.jpg" style="border:0" />
dwarf or juvenile ? - paul monfils - 04-16-2010
The rather thin lip and the presence of the protoconch both indicate a juvenile specimen. In adults the lip is thicker (though not extremely thick in this species) and the protoconch is almost always worn off.
dwarf or juvenile ? - helmetapointe - 04-16-2010
Thank you Paul!
If i understand you well,the size of the protoconch,propotional to the bodyworl,is to much important,to be a dwarf.
dwarf or juvenile ? - paul monfils - 04-16-2010
Well, that's a good point. If it were an adult dwarf, I suppose it might retain the protoconch the same way a juvenile does, at least for a while. But this specimen definitely has a juvenile look to it, its apparent thickness and weight, plus the well formed protoconch. Â An adult dwarf, in a photograph, without a size reference, would look virtually identical to a large adult shell. This one doesn't.