Favartia levicula (Dall, 1889) was collected at around 110 ft depth and photographed by me aboard the Research Vessel W.T. Hogarth during a recent Gulf of Mexico research cruise led by Dr. Greg Herbert of the University of South Florida. Although the shell illustrated measures about 12 mm, the species is known to reach 18 mm in height. The Lightweight Murex has an elegant sculpture of elegant, “upturned” spines. The identification of the species was confirmed by my friend and colleague Roland Houart of the Royal Institute of Natural Sciences in Belgium, who is a specialist in the family Muricidae (murex snails and drills).
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