Trochidae – Cantharidinae: Phasianotrochus eximius (Perry, 1811) (‘choice kelp-shell’)

Synonym(s): eximius Perry, 1811 carinatus Perry, 1811 lineata Lamarck, 1822 rosea Lamarck, 1822 badius Wood, 1828 australis Quoy & Gaimard, 1834 splendidulus Swainson, 1840 leucostigma Philippi, 1845 peronii Philippi, 1846 quoyi Philippi, 1846 fulimineus Kiener, 1850 lividus Kiener, 1850 nitidus Kiener, 1850 vermiculosus Kiener, 1850 gracilis Philippi, 1851 ocellatus Gould, 1862.

Typical shell-length 35 mm. Shells of fresh specimens may be brick-red or olive-green, sometimes with paler wavy, concentric and/or axial lines. Worn specimens are nacreous, often with a greenish tinge. Lives intertidally and subtidally amongst seaweed, especially in sheltered parts of otherwise exposed shores. Native. Endemic to southeastern and southwestern Australia (NSW, TAS, VIC, SA and WA). In Tasmanian waters, this is a widespread and quite common species.