Recluz’s Moon Shell, Glossaulax reclusiana

Recluz’s Moon Shell, Glossaulax reclusiana. Shell provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, February 2011. Size: 5.8 cm (2.3 inches) x 4.8 cm (1.9 inches).

Phylogeny: The Recluz’s Moon Shell, Glossaulax reclusiana (DeShays, 1839), is a gastropod mollusk that is a member of the Naticidae Family of Moon Shells. The genus Glossaulax is one of thirty-eight genera in this family, and there are six species in this genus. They are also known as the Tall Moon Snail Shell and in Mexico as Caracol Luna de Récluz. This shell was named in honor of the French malacologist César Auguste Récluz.

Description: Recluz’s Moon Shell have a tall, solid shell with four to five whorls. They have a more pronounced spire than in most moon snails, and  a bluntly pointed apex. The exterior of the shell is smooth, with fine growth lines. The umbilicus is partially filled by the glossy white callus. The exterior of the shell is grayish-brown to light brown in color. The base and interior are white, often with purple blush inside the outer lip. Recluz’s Moon Shells reach a maximum of 8.4 cm (3.3 inches) in length and 7.0 cm (2.7 inches) in height.

Habitat and Distribution: Recluz’s Moons are most often found on sandbars and in shallow bays from the intertidal zone to depths up to 50 m (165 feet). They are a temperate to tropical Eastern Pacific species that are found in all Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean with the exception that they are absent from south of Mazatlán, Sinaloa, along the central and southwest coasts of the mainland.

Ecology and Behavior: Recluz’s Moons are predators that feed primarily on clams. They are gonochoric and reproduce sexually, with internal fertilization.  The eggs are laid in a “sand collar”. Their engagement in any type of commensal, parasitic, or symbiotic relationship has not been formally documented. Recluz’s Moon Shell has not been formally evaluated from a conservation perspective however, they are fairly common with a relatively wide distribution and should be consider to be of Least Concern.

Synonyms: Natica reclusiana, Neverita alta, Neverita reclusiana, Neverita reclusiana imperforata, Neverita recluziana, Neverita recluziana var. alta, Neverita recluziana var. imperforata, Neverita secta, Polinices reclusianus, Polinices recluzianus, Polinices recluzianus alta, Polinices recluzianus var. imperforata, Polynices (Neverita) recluziana, and Polynices (Neverita) recluziana var. alta.