Swainson’s Miter Shell, Isara swansoniiThe Miter Shells are members of the Mitridae Family that are solid, small to medium sized spindle or bullet shaped shells that have five to eight whorls and a high and pointed spire. They derive their name from their resemblance to ecclesiastical headgear. Their aperture is narrow and is between one quarter and one-half the shells length, with an outer lip that often toothed, and an inside edge that has folds or pleats. The siphonal canal is usually very short. Miter Shells may be smooth or have axial, cancellate or spiral ridges. The Miters from the Indo-Pacific as usually very colorful while those of the Eastern Pacific are drab. Some miters, but not all, have a periostracum. Similarly, some, but not all, have an operculum.
The Miters reside in sand substrate are found crawling just under the surface of the sand, or under rocks on sand from the intertidal zone to depths up to 300 m (1,000 feet). They are predatory feeding on mollusks and worms. In turn they are preyed upon by crabs, fish, and mollusks. They are found in tropical and temperate seas, worldwide. There are about three hundred and eighty species in the Mitridae Family of which ten are found within the coastal waters of the Baja.