Bulletin - United States National Museum - Smithsonian Institution

152 BULLETIN 91, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM.
OXYSTELE SAGITTIFERA Lamarck.
The young of this species are exceedingly interesting and might
lead one to consider them a Gibbula. I append a description.
Shell very small, remarkably colored; lines of connected dots
of red radiate from the summit of the turns, curving decidedly
protractively down to the periphery. These are separated by bands
of pale blue which are about as wide as the red bands. In some
specimens the blue is replaced by olive. The under side is dotted
with the same reddish brown spots at irregular intervals upon a
light-olive ground. Nuclear whorls one and one-half, well rounded,
smooth. Post-nuclear turns well rounded, slightly impressed at
the summit to render the suture weakly channeled; marked with
fine, depressed, slightly rounded, spiral threads, of which 17
occur between the periphery and the summit on the last turn.
These threads are separated by mere incised lines. The rest of
the sculpture on the spire consists of very fine fines of growth.
Periphery of the last whorl obtusely angulated. Base short, openly
umbilicated, marked like the spire with slender, low, rounded
threads, of which 12 occur between the edge of the umbilicus
and the periphery. The umbilicus appears to be devoid of spiral
sculpture, being marked only by the little coarser lines of growth.
Aperture very large; outer lip thin; inner lip curved and slightly
reflected.
The specimen described has three post-nuclear whorls, and measures:
Altitude, 1.8 mm.; greater diameter, 2.5 mm.
Cat. No. 96, U.S.N.M., one specimen dollected by William Stimpson
on the North Pacific Exploring Expedition at Simons Ba} r , Cape of
Good Hope. Cat. No. 113, U.S.N.M., fourteen specimens collected b}^
the same party at Cape of Good Hope. Cat. No. 89241, U.S.N.M.,
two specimens from the Cape of Good Hope. Cat. No. 98009a,
U.S.N.M., one specimen from Kassouga, South Africa. Cat. No.
98018, U.S.N.M., three specimens from the Peddie coast. Cat.
No. 98019, U.S.N.M., seven specimens from the same locality. Cat.
No. 98020, U.S.N.M., three specimens from the same place. Cat.
No. 98021, U.S.N.M., three specimens from the Peddie coast. Cat.
No. 98259, U.S.N.M., five specimens from the Cape of Good Hope.
Cat No. 125373, U.S.N .M., three specimens from Cape Town. Cat.
No. 131106, U.S.N.M., one specimen labeled: "South Africa," without
specific locality. Nine lots of this species, all from Port Alfred,
are in the collection of the United States National Museum: Cat.
No. 186873, four specimens (Coll. No. 248); Cat. No. 187107, two
specimens (Coll. No. 652); Cat. No. 187108, one specimen (Coll.
No. 653); Cat. No. 187113, one young specimen (Coll. No. 659);
Cat. No. 249772, three young specimens (Coll. No. 1044); Cat. No.
250488, eight specimens (Coll. No. 1361); Cat. No. 250489, four