Atys (gastropod)

Atys is a genus of very small to medium-sized sea snails, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the family Haminoeidae.

All the species within the genus Atys are herbivores. They occur in tropical and warm oceans and seas. They are cephalaspideans, part of the suborder of headshield slugs and bubble snails.

The genus was named after Atys, a king of Alba Longa, who was mentioned in ancient Greek texts.

Description
These snails have a shell which is very lightweight and translucent, with a sunken spire. The shape of the shell in some species resembles a bubble, and because of this, species in this genus are commonly known as Atys bubble shells or Atys bubble snails. (Several other shelled families within the Cephalaspidea are even more commonly known as "bubble shells" or "bubble snails", for example, the Bullidae.)

The anatomy of the soft parts of most species within this genus has not been studied, but it seems that some of the species in this genus can not reliably be discriminated on the basis of shell characters alone. Unfortunately however, a considerable number of the species were originally named from empty shells, and as a result, their exact identity may be problematic.

Species
Species within the genus Atys include:
 * Atys alayoi Espinosa, Fernandez-Garcès & Ortea, 2004
 * Atys angustatus Smith, 1972
 * Atys beberkiriana Martin, 1906
 * Atys bicolor Bozzetti, 2009
 * Atys blainvilliana Récluz, 1843 (nomen dubium - probably a synonym of Atys jeffreysi)
 * Distribution : Mediterranean, Turkey
 * Atys brocchii Michelotti, 1847
 * Distribution : Mediterranean, Turkey
 * Atys caribaeus d'Orbigny, 1841 Also known as Caribbean glassy-bubble, Sharp’s paper-bubble
 * Distribution : Florida, Caribbean, Brazil, Western Atlantic Ocean.
 * Length : 11 mm
 * Description : found at depths up to 183 m; small ovate white shell, narrowing toward the apex; sunken spire; body whorl has spiral grooves at the edges; narrow aperture
 * Atys castus Carpenter, 1864 clean glassy-bubble
 * Distribution : Baja California, Mexico
 * Length : 10 mm
 * Atys chelidon Melvill, 1912
 * Atys cheverti Brazier, 1879
 * Atys chimera Baker & Hanna, 1927
 * Distribution : Baja California, Mexico
 * Length : 7 mm
 * Atys constrictus Habe, 1952
 * Atys convexa Preston, 1908
 * Atys costulosa Pease, 1869
 * Atys curta A. Adams, 1850 striate bubble
 * Atys cylindraeus (Helbling, 1779)
 * Atys cylindrica Hinds, 1779
 * Distribution : Indo-Pacific
 * Length : 30 mm
 * Description : Thin, fragile, subcylindrical shell with sunken apex. Color is white or very light brown. it may have a few brown axial lines.
 * Atys dactylus Hedley, 1899
 * Atys darnleyensis Brazier, 1879
 * Atys debilis Pease, 1871
 * Distribution : Hawaii
 * Length : 10 mm
 * Description : on sandy bottoms where they burrow through the sand with their flattened headshield for food like small crustaceans.
 * Atys dubiosa Brazier, 1879
 * Atys ehrenbergi A. Issel, 1869 (possibly = Atys naucum)
 * Distribution : Red Sea
 * Length : 11 mm
 * Atys flavovirens Melvill & Standen, 1903
 * Atys fukuokaensis Habe
 * Distribution: Japan
 * Atys guildingi Sowerby II, 1869 Guildin’s atys
 * Distribution: Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Brazil
 * Length : 12 mm
 * Description : found at depths up to 25 m
 * Atys hyalinus Watson, 1883
 * Atys jeffreysi Weinkauff, 1868
 * Distribution : Canary Islands, Madeira, Azores, Mediterranean
 * Atys kekele Pilsbry, 1920
 * Atys kuhnsi Pilsbry, 1917
 * Atys liriope Hertlein & Strong, 1951
 * Distribution : California, Mexico
 * Length : 10 mm
 * Atys lithiensis Sturany, 1903
 * Atys macandrawii E. A. Smith, 1872
 * Distribution : Caribbean, Brazil, Eastern Atlantic Ocean, Azores, Canaries, Cape Verde Islands
 * Length : 7.3 mm
 * Description : found at depths of up to 75 m
 * Atys mirandae Smith, 1872
 * Atys multistriata Schepman, 1913
 * Distribution : Micronesia, Philippines
 * Length : 12 mm
 * Description : short headshield, broadened anteriorly, with internal black eyes. Short posterior lobes. Triangulate parapodia cover the anterior of the shell; short, rounded tail; The translucent Hancock’s organs appear as a thin low profile ridge. Translucent white animal with brown spots and clusters of opaque white dots; thin, elongate, ovoid shell; inner margin of the outer lip extends above the apex; slightly curved columella; deep umbilicus behind the fold
 * Atys muscaria Gould, 1859
 * Atys naucum Linnaeus, 1758 white nut sheath bubble, Pacific nut sheath bubble
 * Distribution : Indo-Pacific (excluding the Red Sea), Australia
 * Length : 22–50 mm
 * Description : common species; light brown inflated bubble shell;: the brown color comes from the periostracum, covering the shell; this flakes off when the snail dies; juveniles have lengthwise brown wavy lines on the shell.
 * Atys neglectus Preston, 1908 *
 * Atys nonscriptus clean-slate glassy-bubble
 * Atys obscuratus Dall, 1896 obscure glassy-bubble
 * Distribution : North Carolina
 * Length : 4 mm
 * Atys okamotoi Habe, 1952
 * Atys pacei Preston, 1908
 * Atys palmarum Hedley, 1912
 * Atys porcellana Gould, 1859
 * Atys pransa Hedley, 1904
 * Atys pulchra Brazier, 1879
 * Atys reliquua Iredale, 1936
 * Atys riiseanus Mörch, 1875
 * Distribution : Florida, Caribbean, Brazil
 * Length : 13 mm
 * Description : found at depths up to 90 m
 * Atys sandersoni Dall, 1881
 * Distribution : North Carolina, Cuba, Panama, Brazil
 * Length : 8 mm
 * Atys scrobiculata A. Adams, 1862
 * Atys semistriata Pease, 1860 variably banded atys, variable banded bubble
 * Distribution : West Pacific
 * Length : 6 mm
 * Atys submalleata Smith, 1904
 * Atys supracancellata Schepman, 1913 : synonym of Sabatia supracancellata (Schepman, 1913)
 * Atys vixumbilicata Preston, 1908
 * Atys xarifae Marcus, 1959

Books

 * Redfern, Colin, 2001, Bahamian Seashells, a thousand species from Abaco, Bahamas, published by BahamianSeashells.com Inc