Olivella pycna
"Shell small, heavy, elongate-nuciform, widest near the middle, the spire tapering almost straightly to an acute point; anterior extremity truncate. Whorls seven, their slopes nearly straight on the spire, the body-whorl large and strongly convex. Suture sharply, narrowly, and deeply channelled. Aperture about three-fifths the length of the shell, the outer lip sharp and distinctly arcuate, its obtuse anterior lobe slightly exceeding the columella anteriorly past the short notch-like canal. Parietal wall covered by a strong white callus, heaviest and of greatest extent posteriorly where it rounds rather abruptly to pass under the free and overhanging outer lip just in front of the sutural channel, the parietal callus not passing the suture but confluent in the channel with a second low callus just posterior, developed as the termination of a low calloused band which bounds the channel posteriorly and covers about a third of the adjoining whorl before its gradual and final disappearance. Columellar fold moderately heavy, usually distinctly duplex but sometimes single, the columellar and extreme anterior region covered by a third white callus which is overlain near the aperture by the parietal callus. Surface smooth, lustrous, under magnification seen to be very finely and closely covered with minute wavy spirals on the uncalloused portions which are again minutely decussated by the numerous fine lines of growth. Parietal callus minutely punctate. Colour light brownish buff (usually quite near Tilleul Buff), clouded brownish, though usually with a rather wide buff spiral band persisting below the suture, the whole conspicuously ornamented by numerous highly irregular vertical wavy stripes of Fawn Colour or Army Brown, with occasional suffusion of Light Vinaceous Drab; interior , except the buff lip-margin, Walnut Brown to Cameo Brown; callous portions white as noted.". Recent. Bolinas Bay, California, USA.
