Home > Northwest Shells & Marine Life > PNW Shells & Marine Life Photos > Gastropods >  Gastropods - Ptychatractidae, Cancellariidae,
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Click on photo to enlarge.  Scale line in photo equals 1cm unless otherwise specified.
* Species which are commonly encountered on the beach.





Ptychatractidae
Exilioidea rectirostris Exilioidea rectirostris
San Juan Islands, WA













Exilioidea rectirostris (Carpenter, 1865)
Small Tall Whelk
subtidal, 60-800m          size to 30mm
northern Mexico to southern Alaska
This is a long, narrow shell with a long siphonal canal.  It has axial ribbing and faint spiral grooves.
(previous names - Exilia rectirostris, Chrysodomus rectirostris, Tritonofusus rectirostris, Plicifusus rectirostris)  


Cancellariidae
Neadmete modesta Neadmete modesta
         both photos - Barkley Sound, BC    more juvenile shell, without periostracum
Neadmete modesta (Carpenter, 1864)
Modest Latticework Snail
low intertidal to at least 91m           size to 40mm
Washington to southern Alaska
This is rarely found intertidally.  The shell is light colored with a brown periostracum.  It has cancellate sculpturing and deep sutures between the whorls.
(synonyms - Admete modesta, Cancellaria modesta)


Volutidae
Arctomelon stearnsii
Bering Sea, AK

Gastropods 

Family Ptychatractidae, Cancellariidae,

Volutidae & Granulinidae















Granulinidae
Granulina margaritula Granulina margaritula Granulina margaritula
                 Freshwater Bay, WA                                      San Juan Islands, WA, subtidal            Tongue Point, WA, subtidal
Granulina margaritula (Carpenter, 1857)
Pear-Shaped Marginella
intertidal to 91m          Panama to southern Alaska          size to 3mm
This tiny snail is occasionally found intertidally.  The shell is gray-white.  It can sometimes be found on rocks underneath algae which is attached to the rock.
(synonyms - Cypraeolina margaritula, Marginella margaritula, Volutella margaritula, Granulina pyriformis)
















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Arctomelon stearnsii (Dall, 1872)
Stearn's Volute
subtidal to 800m          size to 180mm
Haida Gwaii, BC to Arctic
This shell usually has a chalky white appearance.  The aperture is usually light brown and somewhat glossy.

















This page last revised: 6-29-2024