Tampa Drill

Shell size up to 25 mm; shell thick, whorls with strongly angled periphery. Sculpture of about 12 strong axial ribs crossed by equally strong spiral cords, 5-7 on last whorl, 2 -3 on preceding whorls. Outer lip moderately thick, with 4-6 denticles on inner surface. Color dull brownish-gray. Aperture reddish-brown inside. This species had not been found on Sanibel or surrounding areas since 1950, but the BMSM collection includes several lots collected before then. The juvenile shell on supplementary image was collected by dredge off New Port Richey, Florida, by Laura Bedinger, and photographed by Joette Jernigan of the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County in Tampa. The third image is of an immature shell found by Ken Piech at Bunche Beach, Fort Myers, in January 2021.