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Provanna

Provanna is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Provannidae.

The species was named after Dall's first wife.

This is a very old genus with species already existing in Cretaceous seep deposits off Japan (93 - 100 million years ago). The Caribbean and the Pacific fauna were isolated about 3 million years ago by the closure of the Central American Isthmus.

Description

The apical whorls of the protoconch are lacking through decollation. The opening is then sealed with a calcareous plug. The sculpture of the ovate fusiform shell shows scattered sigmoidal axial ribs that are crossed by spiral cords. The whorls are broad.

Habitat

They are common in hydrothermal vents, hydrocarbon cold seeps and (more rarely) on deep-water food-falls, depending on the species. Most species feed on filamentous bacteria, while others feed on detritus.

Species

Species within the genus Provanna include:

Several fossil species have been described, predominantly identified from hydrocarbon seep deposits (Saether et al., 2010), including:

There also are several fossil species known, but not formally described and named, from Central America, Japan, and possibly the Philippines (see Saether et al., 2010).

Species brought into synonymy:
  • Provanna marianensis <small>Okutani & Fujikura, 1990</small>: synonym of Desbruyeresia marianensis <small>(Okutani & Fujikura, 1990)</small>

References

  • Healy, J. M. 1990. Taxonomic affinities of the deep-sea genus Provanna: new evidence from sperm structure; J. Molluscan Stud. 56: 119-122
  • Warén, A. & Bouchet, P. (1993). New records, species, genera, and a new family of gastropods from hydrothermal vents and hydrocarbon seeps. Zoologica Scripta. 22: 1-90.
  • Spencer, H.G., Marshall, B.A. & Willan, R.C. 2009 Recent Mollusca. pp 196–219 in: Gordon, D.P. (Ed.), The New Zealand inventory of biodiversity. 1. Kingdom Animalia: Radiata, Lophotrochozoa, Deuterostomia. Canterbury University Press, Christchurch
  • Saether, K.P., Little, C.T.S. & Campbell, K.A. (2010) A new fossil provannid gastropod from Miocene hydrocarbon seep deposits, East Coast Basin, North Island, New Zealand. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 55, 507–517.

External links