Gauntlet Vase Shell, Volutella caestus

Gauntlet Vase Shell, Volutella caestus. Shell provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, March 2011. Size: 8.0 cm (3.1 inches) x 5.6 cm (2.2 inches).

Gauntlet Vase Shell, Volutella caestus. Shell courtesy of a commercial fisherman Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur, January 2023. Size: 12.4 cm (4.8 inches) x 9.4 cm (3.7 inches). Photograph and Identification courtesy of Colin Campbell, DVM, Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur.

Phylogeny: The Gauntlet Vase Shell, Volutella caestus (Broderip, 1833), is gastropod mollusk that is a member of the Vasidae Family of Vase Shells. The genus Volutella is one of nine genera in this family, and there are two species in this genus. They are also known as the Panamanian Vase and the Panamic Vase and in Mexico as Turbinela Manopla.

Description:  Gauntlet Vase Shells are heavy, solid, and cone-shaped. They consist of six or seven whorls, with a moderately high, pointed, spire. They have a broad shoulder that is marked with blunt spines. The body whorl is tapering and sculpted with strong spiral ridges.  The aperture is long, and tapers from top to bottom. The columnella is marked with folds. The exterior surface is white but they are normally covered by a thick, brown, periostracum. The interior is glossy white. Gauntlet Vase Shells reach a maximum of 12.4 cm (4.8 inches) in length and 9.4 cm (3.7 inches) in height established by the shell photographed above. This species appears similar to Rock Shells of the Thais genus, which lack folds on the collumnella.

Habitat and Distribution: Gauntlet Vase Shells are found on and within sand substrate within the intertidal zone and to depths up to 55 m (180 feet). They are a subtropical to tropical Eastern Pacific species that in Mexico are found from Bahía Kino, Sonora south to Guatemala. They have not been documented  along the west coast of the Baja Peninsula.

Ecology and Behavior: Gauntlet Vase Shells are are a poorly studied and understood species. There is very limited documentation of their diet, predation, reproduction or ecosystem interactions. Other species in Family Vasidae are predators that feed primarily on polychaetes, sipunculans and bivalves. They are gonochoric and reproduce sexually, through broadcast spawning, with external fertilization. There is no mention in the available literature of them engaging in any types of parasitic, commensal, or symbiotic relationships. From a conservation perspective they have not been formally evaluated however they are fairly common with a relatively wide distribution and should be consider to be of Least Concern.

Synonyms: Turbinella ardeola, Turbinella caestus, and Vasum caestus.