2013/05/02 by Buzz Owen · 2 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · #Marine Biology and Ecology Research #Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies #Ocean Acidification Effects and Responses
paper · pdf · doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3646.2.7
openalex publication_date 2013/05/02 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/15
Haliotis rugosa Lamarck, 1822, and H. pustulata Reeve, 1846, have long been a source of confusion. Herbert (1990) suggested the synonymy of the two and designated the lectotype and type locality of H. rugosa. Examination of several hundred shells of each of the two taxa has demonstrated that the H. rugosa morphology is found only on Mauritius and Reunion, while the H. pustulata morph occurs at Madagascar and the east coast of Africa, from approximately Park Rynie, South Africa, to the Red Sea and east to Yemen. No specimens from the latter localities resemble H. rugosa; however, a very small number of specimens from Mauritius have an intermediate morphology between the two taxa. The two species-level taxa are here considered as subspecies of each other. They show some overlapping shell morphology, but are geographically isolated.