Banded Top Shell, Tegula ligulata

Banded Top Shell, Tegula ligulata. Shell provided courtesy of the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, July 2013. Size: 1.6 cm (0.6 inches) x 1.2 cm (0.5 inches).

The Banded Top Shell, Tegula ligulata (Menke, 1850), is a gastropod mollusk that is a member of the Tegulidae Family of Top Shells. They have been divided into subspecies, based on geography,  that differ in the strength of spiral striations and color patterns. The shell has a fairly low in elevation with straight-sided whorls that are often knobbed. The exterior of their shells is brown with white markings. The umbilical area is white. The Banded Top Shell is relatively small reaching a maximum of 1.6 cm (0.6 inches) in height and 1.2 cm (0.5 inches) in width.

 Banded Top Shells reside on hard substrate in the intertidal zone to depths up to 100 m (330 feet). Their range is limited to western Mexico and they are found in the Sea of Cortez from Santa Rosalía to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, however, they have not been documented from the West Coast of Baja.

A synonym is Trochus ligulatus.