Elliptotellina protensa
| Elliptotellina protensa Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| Holotype from Auckland War Memorial Museum | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Cardiida |
| Family: | Tellinidae |
| Genus: | Elliptotellina |
| Species: | †E. protensa
|
| Binomial name | |
| †Elliptotellina protensa (A. W. B. Powell, 1935)
| |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Elliptotellina protensa is an extinct species of bivalve, a marine mollusc, in the family Tellinidae.[1] Fossils of the species date to early Miocene strata of the west coast of the Auckland Region, New Zealand.
Description
In the original description, Powell described the species as follows:
Shell small, thin, compressed, elongate-oval, rounded at both ends. Beaks a little in front of the anterior third, very little raised and directed forwards. Posterior end more narrowly rounded than anterior. Sculpture consisting of fine, somewhat irregular, concentric growth lines.[2]
The holotype of the species measures 11.25 mm (0.443 in) in length and has a height of 6 mm (0.24 in) and a single valve thickness of 1.75 mm (0.069 in).[2] The species can be differentiated from E. urinatoria due to having a more elongate-oval outline, a more narrowly contracted posterior end, and a more irregular sculpture.[2]
Taxonomy
The species was first described by A. W. B. Powell in 1935, using the name Ascitellina protensa.[2] By 1990, Elliptotellina protensa had become the accepted name for the species.[3][4] The holotype was collected at an unknown date prior to 1935 from north end of Pillow Lava Bay, south of Muriwai, Auckland Region (then more commonly known as Motutara), and is held in the collections of Auckland War Memorial Museum.[5][6]
Distribution
This extinct marine species occurs in early Miocene strata of the Nihotupu Formation of New Zealand, on the west coast of the Waitākere Ranges of the Auckland Region, New Zealand.[5] Additionally, a fossil found at Pakaurangi Point on the Kaipara Harbour may also be a member of the same species.[7]
References
- ^ a b Elliptotellina protensa (A. W. B. Powell, 1935) †. Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 15 January 2026.
- ^ a b c d Powell, A. W. B. (1935). "Tertiary Mollusca from Motutara, West Coast, Auckland". Records of the Auckland Institute and Museum. 1: 327–340. ISSN 0067-0464. JSTOR 42905961. Wikidata Q58676576. This article incorporates text from this source, which is under a CC BY 4.0 license.
- ^ Beu, A. G.; Maxwell, P. A. (1990). "New Zealand Cenozoic Mollusca". New Zealand Geological Survey Paleontological Bulletin. 58: 399. ISSN 0114-2283.
- ^ Maxwell, P.A. (2009). "Cenozoic Mollusca". In Gordon, D.P. (ed.). New Zealand Inventory of Biodiversity. Volume one. Kingdom Animalia: Radiata, Lophotrochozoa, Deuterostomia. Christchurch: Canterbury University Press. p. 237. ISBN 978-1-877257-72-8.
- ^ a b Blom, Wilma M. (2025). "Annotated Catalogue of Fossil and Extant Molluscan Types in the Auckland War Memorial Museum". Bulletin of the Auckland Museum. 22. doi:10.32912/BULLETIN/22. ISSN 1176-3213. OCLC 1550165130. Wikidata Q135397912.
- ^ "Elliptotellina protensa". Collections Online. Auckland War Memorial Museum. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
- ^ Laws, C. R. (1943–1944). "The Molluscan Faunule at Pakaurangi Point, Kaipara.—No. 3". Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 73: 297-311.