Fluctuating Turban Shell, Turbo fluctuosus

Fluctuating Turban Shell, Turbo fluctuosus. Shell courtesy of the commercial fishermen of the  greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, July 2011. Size: 5.2 cm (2.0 inches) x 5.2 cm (2.0 inches).

The Fluctuating Turban, Turbo fluctuosus (Wood, 1828), is a gastropod mollusk that is a member of the Turbinidae Family of Turbans. They are also known as the Gulf Turban, the Eastern Pacific Turban, and the Wavy Turban and in Mexico as turbante del Pacifico. The shells are sturdy and consist of five rounded with angled shoulder whorls, sculpturing with spiral ridges which vary from fine to very coarse and nodular, a large round aperture and are taller than they are wide. The exterior of the shell is highly variable in color and may be light brown, reddish brown, greenish, or orange with whitish and dark brown mottling; the interior is iridescent. The Fluctuating Turban reach a maximum of 8.6 cm (3.3 inches) of length and 8.6 cm (3.3 inches) in height.

Fluctuating Turbans are found most commonly attached to and under rocks or over and within mud and sand substrate in the intertidal zone to depths up to 40 m (130 feet). They range from Cedros Island, Baja California to Peru, including the Galapagos and Tres Marias Islands but are absent from southern Mexican waters. They are found throughout the Sea of Cortez.

Synonyms include Turbo assimilis, Turbo fluctuates, Turbo fokkesi, and Turbo tessellatus.