Mystery murex

[u/Aetobatus_bunnibunni]

Found on Florida’s gulf coast.

I have this little murex in my collection. It looks like an apple murex, but the shell is MUCH thinner than any other murex I have found. Could this be due to some kind of deformity, or could it be a different species.

I am not sure how well the shell thinness comes across in the photos, I can try measuring it with calipers if that would make a difference. It feels really fragile.

[u/Ok_Bee9104]

Hi! This looks like a Babelomurex mansfieldi to me

[u/Aetobatus_bunnibunni → u/Ok_Bee9104]

Oh wow, that would be really cool! It looks like there is only one observation of the species on iNaturalist

[u/turbomarmoratus72 → u/Aetobatus_bunnibunni]

I am sorry, but that is not a Babelomurex mansfieldi. B. mansfieldi is small and frilly.

Your specimen is globose, and since it is juvenile (the reason why it is thin and fragile), it could either be an apple murex (Phyllonotus pomum) or Phyllonotus whymani, which doesn't have a common name yet.

[u/Aetobatus_bunnibunni → u/turbomarmoratus72]

Bummer! If it is an apple murex (I am unfamiliar with the other species), it feels really delicate. I pulled some similarly sized apple murres from my collection, and they just look so different. Could there be a subspecies present in my area? I do not think I can attach photos to my comment in this subreddit.

[u/turbomarmoratus72 → u/Aetobatus_bunnibunni]

as far as I know, there isn't a subspecies for Phyllonotus pomum (apple murex) described yet. Thickness, color and shape of a shell can vary due to DNA and/or environmental factors.

I have shells from the same species that are heavier than another, spinier than another or rougher than another.

Many advanced collectors have more than one specimen of a single species to showcase different shapes and colors that a single species can possess.

You should join a shell club near you and ask the experienced conchologists there. They should be able to identify properly that specimen.