About Tritia reticulata (Linnaeus, 1758)
The shell of Tritia reticulata ranges in length from 20 mm to 35 mm. It is an elongated, egg-shaped shell that is rounded and obtuse at the lower end, and pointed at the upper end. The shell is moderately thick. Its conical spire is made up of eight or nine whorls, which are either almost flat or slightly swollen, and are spaced apart from each other. The whorl surface is deeply chequered by longitudinal folds crossed by numerous striae. The aperture is moderately sized, white, and ovate. The outer lip is thick, and bears seven or eight striae on its inner surface; the striae in the middle section are generally the largest. The columella is slightly curved, and covered by a thin, shiny plate. The shell is colored yellowish white, reddish, or chestnut, with a blackish blue band running beneath the suture. This species is distributed in the Northeast Atlantic, including European waters, and can also be found in the Atlantic Ocean off the Azores, the Canary Islands, the Cape Verde Islands, and Morocco.
