Description of Pyropelta elongata sp. nov. (Gastropoda, Pyropeltidae) from a Methane Seep Area in the South China Sea.

Abstract

Abstract: The genus Pyropelta McLean & Haszprunar, 1987 is exclusively restricted to deep-sea chemosynthesis-based environments, that range from the Western and Eastern Pacific to West Africa. In the present study, a new species, Pyropelta elongata sp. nov., collected from a methane seep area in South China Sea is described and illustrated. The generic assignation is mainly based on shell and radula characters. Pyropelta elongata sp. nov. is characterized by relatively large, elongate shell with a low profile and has a radula formula of (ca. 20)+5+1+5+(ca. 20). These features can distinguish the new species from other congeners.