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Turbo (gastropod)

Adapted from Wikipedia · Discoverer experience

A colorful sea snail called Turbo petholatus found in the waters around the Maldives.

The Turbo is a group of large sea snails that live in the ocean. These creatures have special parts called gills to breathe and an operculum, which is a hard lid that covers their shells when they are safe inside. They belong to a family of snails known as turban snails.

Turbo is the main example or type genus for its family, meaning it helps scientists understand this whole group of snails. These snails are part of a bigger group of animals called marine gastropod molluscs, which means they are snails with a single shell that live in saltwater environments.

Description

Turbo snails have thick, spiral shells that can be from about 20 to 200 mm long. Their shells often have knobs or spines and a rounded opening. These snails also have a special hard cover called an operculum that fits over their opening when they retract.

These snails have a broad, short tongue-like structure called a radula with many tiny teeth arranged in a specific pattern. The earliest Turbo species lived in the ancient seas of the Upper Cretaceous period, around 100 million years ago.

Taxonomy

The group Turbo is made up of large sea snails that live in the ocean. There are 66 known types of these snails, along with five smaller types called subspecies. They belong to a bigger group called the turban snails.

Species

Species in the genus Turbo include:

Synonyms

Many different names have been used for the same kinds of Turbo snails over time. Here are some of those names and what they are now known as:

The following species were nomina nuda (names not published with an adequate description):

  • Turbo curvatus Chiereghini MS, Brusina, 1870 (nomen nudum): accepted as Eulima philippii Weinkauff, 1868

The following species are alternate representation:

Shell and operculum of Turbo tuberculosus
  • Turbo setosus Gmelin, 1843 represented as Turbo setosus Gmelin, 1791 (alternate representation)

The following species are nomina dubia (names of unknown or doubtful application):

  • Turbo articulatus Reeve, 1848 (nomen dubium)
  • Turbo concinnus Philippi, 1846 (nomen dubium)
  • Turbo crellenus Linnaeus, 1758 (nomen dubium)
  • Turbo disjunctus Anton, 1838 (nomen dubium)
  • Turbo elegans Philippi, 1846 (nomen dubium)
  • Turbo margaritaceus Linnaeus, 1758 (nomen dubium)
  • Turbo pustulatus Brocchi, 1821 (nomen dubium)
  • Turbo variabilis Reeve, 1842 (nomen dubium)

Temporary names:

  • † Turbo geniculatus Brocchi, 1814

The following species are species inquirenda (names with uncertain or disputed validity):

Human uses

When people keep the Caribbean hermit crab, also called the "purple pincher," as a pet, they often use Turbo shells for the crab to live in.

In Korea and Japan, a type of Turbo called the "horned turban" is a special and costly food, known there as "sazae." The beautiful operculum, or lid, from some Turbo species is used to make jewelry and buttons, and these are sometimes called "cat's eyes."

Related articles

Turbo castanea
Littorina saxatilis
George Montagu (naturalist)
Gills
Type genus
Gastropod

This article is a child-friendly adaptation of the Wikipedia article on Turbo (gastropod), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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