Southwest Florida Shells

by José H. Leal

Family Marginellidae

Prunum bellulum

(Dall, 1890)

Little Oat Marginella

Shell small, elongate for genus. Surface smooth. Spire about 1/7 shell length. Suture distinct. Aperture narrower posteriorly, outer lip bent in middle. Columella with four folds. Color cream to whitish. This is a much smaller shell than locally occurring Prunum succineum; this latter also differs by having a much wider aperture anteriorly (toward the bottom of the pictures.) This is a rare find for Sanibel Island; the shell in the main illustration was collected by Ken Piech in early 2014 on the island. This may actually represent a separate species (compare with more typical specimen from the Florida Keys in the supplementary illustration.)