Biodiversity & Conservation

Pearly top shell - Margarites helicinus

Margarites helicinus

Image Erling Svensen - The pearl top shell Margarites helicinus. Image width ca 25 mm.
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Distribution map

Margarites helicinus recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

Why do the maps differ?

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Margarites helicinus is not listed under any importance categories.

Taxonomy icon Taxonomy Taxon English term
Phylum Mollusca Snails, slugs, mussels, cockles, clams & squid
Class Gastropoda Snails, slugs & sea butterflies
Authority (Phipps, 1774)
Recent synonyms None
Map icon Recorded Distribution in Britain and Ireland A northern species recorded from the Shetlands to as far south as Yorkshire and Dublin.
Habitat information icon Habitat information From the lower shore to the sublittoral under stones, in pools and on Fucus, Laminaria and smaller algae.
Text page icon Description A thin globular shell, up to 9 mm high, with 4 or 5 whorls that are separated by distinct sutures to give a stepped profile. Translucent, light brown, orange or reddish in colour, with green or purple tints. Aperture large and rounded. Lateral lobes of the foot have 6 (sometimes 5) pairs of tentacles.
Identifying features
  • A brown band is often present on the last whorl.
  • Rounded aperture.
  • Stepped outline of shell.
Additional information icon Additional information No text entered

This review can be cited as follows:

Marie Skewes 2003. Margarites helicinus. Pearly top shell. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 19/06/2013]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=3768>