A NEW SPECIES OF THAIS (MOLLUSCA, NEOGASTROPODA, MURICIDAE) WITH DIRECT DEVELOPMENT FROM NORTHWESTERN AUSTRALIA

Thais wutingi, a new species of Muricidae, is described from rocky and mangrove shores in the vicinity of Darwin, northern Australia. It is relatively common where it occurs but the species may have previously been mistaken for T. gradata (Jonas) or T. javanica (Philippi). The ne w species differs from the latter two species in having a penis with a narrow groove along the greater curvature of the penial base. The lar vae of T. wutingi undergo direct development, hatching from egg capsul es as crawling juveniles, in contrast to the majority of Thais (s.l.) species found in the tropics which have planktotrophic development. It s mode of development may explain the relatively restricted geographic al distribution of this species, which is confined to the north and no rthwestern coasts of Australia.