SPECIES.
1. P. Auriculata. Shell beneath convex; whorls five, a little rounded, crossed by numerous raised equidistant lines, form ing grooves between them ; spire very little raised ; lateral line (extending from the outer whorl to the apex) not convex, but somewhat concave ; mouth very une qual; lips prominent above, and pressed to the preceding whorl beneath ; pillar-lip suddenly reflected, and pressed into the mouth at an acute angle, beneath very acutely concave ; outer-lip a little more prominent in the middle, and within the edge protruded into the mouth; throat extremely narrow ; suture near the mouth suddenly reflected from the preceding whorl, and carinate ; umbilicus dilated, very small within, and exhibiting a groove on the outer whorl. Breadth of the fe male nearly half an inch ; of the male about three-tenths.
Inhabits Florida.
Jour. Acad. Nat. Sciences, vol. i. p. 277.
This curious species we found near St. Augustine, East Florida, in a moist situa ation. They were observed in conside rable numbers; the colour is a reddish brown, indistinctly banded with whitish lines, sometimes with darker ones, mouth white.
2. P. 4vara. Shell covered with nume rous short, robust hairs; spire convex ; whorls four, regularly rounded, with hard ly elevated lines forming grooves, which are much more conspicuous near the mouth ; mouth subreniform, two project ing, obtuse teeth on the outer lip, within separated by a deep sinus ; outer lip ele vated, equal, describing two-thirds of a circle ; pillar lip elevated, broadly but not profoundly emarginate, concave beneath, and connected by the inner side to an elongated lamelliform ,tooth, which is placed obliquely on the penultimate whorl, near the middle of the mouth ; lips almost equally prominent, continued; umbilicus moderate, not exhibiting the volutions, no groove on the ultimate whorl within it. Breadth one-fourth of an inch.
Inhabits Florida.
Jour. Acad. Nat. vol. i. p. 277.
Animal longer than the breadth of the shell, acute behind, above granulated and blackish, beneath, and each side, white.
This we found in the orange groves of Mr. Patio, on the river St. John, East Flo rida; it is usually covered with a black, earthy coat, which is probably collected and detained by the hairs. When unen
cumbered with this vesture, the shell is of a horn colour. It is by no means so common as the preceding species.
S. P. Septemvoiva. Shell much depress ed, discoidal ; spire not prominent; whorls seven, perfectly lateral, compressed, de pressed, and marked with conspicuous lines and grooves above, a projecting ca rina on the upper edge Of the body whorl, beneath which the lines and grooves are obsolete : aperture subreniform, not con tracted; lips equal, elevated, outer one reflected, regularly rounded so as to de scribe two-thirds of a circle, pillar lip pro jecting inwards into an angle or woe!, i which is concave beneath ; beneath, the four exterior volutions equally prominent, transverse diameters equal to those of the upper surface ; umbilicus central, mode rate, attenuatethlo the apex so as to ex hibit the remaining volutions. Breadth, female two-fifths ; male three-tenths of an inch.
Inhabits Georgia and East Florida., Journ: Acad. Nat. Sciences, vol. i. p 278.
A very,common shell•in many parts of Georgia, particularly the sea-islands, also in East Florida. We found them nume rous under the ruins of old fort Picolata, on the St. John's river, and on the Oyster shell Hammocks, n ear the sea, and in other situations, under decaying Palmetto logs, roots, &c.
These shells would have been referred by Linne to the Fenus Helix, but as that genus has been limited by Mr. Lamarck, and others, to those shells of which the apertures are broader than long, I cannot, in the present state of conchology, con sider themas of that genus: Neither can 1 refer them to either of the genera which have been separated from Helix by Messrs. Lamarck, Montfort, &c. by the characters which 'those naturalists have given of their genera. They.differ from others in having the pillar lip elevated considerably above the surfitce of the pe nultimate whorl, so as to be equally pro minent with the outer lip, with which it forms an uninterrupted continuation, and by the concavities beneath the lips, iorm ed by the protrusion of a portion of the shell into the aperture. In this last cha racter it approaches the genus Caprinua of Mr. Montfort, but differs in being urn b ilicated.