About Plicopurpura patula (Linnaeus, 1758)
Plicopurpura patula (Linnaeus, 1758) is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk that belongs to the family Muricidae, the group of murex snails also known as rock snails. This species is commonly called the widemouth rockshell or wide-mouthed purpura. It is a tropical species native to the Western Atlantic. Its natural biogeographical range extends along the Atlantic coast of the Americas from Florida to Trinidade, and it also occurs throughout the Caribbean Sea. Individual snails live in intertidal splash zones on hard rocky shorelines that experience regular wave action. This species has been found sporadically in the Northeast Atlantic, where it was first recorded in 2012 on the Atlantic coast of northern Spain. To date, there is no evidence that this species has established stable populations in the Northeast Atlantic.
