Shell relatively small, reaching about 53 mm. (2,125 inches) in length, solid, imperforate and sculptured. Color white to ivory with spiral bands of grayish brown. In addition, there may be a series of brownish dots in spiral arrangement — whitish in zones separating the brownish bands. On the outer lip there may be 6 to 9 short hori¬zontal bars of brown. Whorls 7 and slightly convex. Spire depressed and produced at an angle of about 80°. Aperture long and narrow. Outer lip thickened and reflected. Parietal wall glazed and with 9 to 12 irregular plicae. Columella short and recurved dorsally to form one side of the siphonal canal. Suture slightly indented. Sculpture consisting of 8 to 10 rounded knobs at the whorl shoulder. The bases of the knobs form rounded ridges which extend down the whorl and flatten out at about the whorl periphery. In addition, there are numerous axial threads which are crossed by fine spiral grooves. Protoconch of 1,5 whorls and smooth. Operculum and radula unknown.

TYPE: Type figures based on Martini, 1777, Conchylien-Cabinet 3(1):97, figs. 932, 933. TYPE LOCALITY: Subsequently selected by Clench and Turner (1964), Cartagena, Colombia. RANGE: In the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico from the east coast of Honduras northward to Mexico. HABITAT: Dredged in 50 to 80 fathoms. DIMENSIONS: Adult specimens are 40 to 87 mm in length. SHELL DESCRIPTION: Shell is medium in size. It is solid and reverse-conic, varies in its color, and has a depressed spire. Protoconch is smooth, of one and a half to two whorls. Teleoconch has five knobbed whorls, slightly rounded at the impressed suture. There are about nine knobs on the adult body whorl. Rounded ridges that extend anteriorly from the knobs become obsolete below the periphery of the adult body whorl. Additional sculpture consists of numerous spiral striae and longitudinal lirae that cross to form a reticulated pattern. Aperture is long and rather narrow. It flares posteriorly and becomes pinched-in towards the siphonal canal, giving the shell the reverse-conic appearance mentioned above. Outer lip is thickened, with about eight horizontal brown bars on the inner edge. Columella is recurved dorsally with numerous, irregular, weak folds. Siphonal notch and fasciole are present. Base color is white to ivory, heavily sprinkled with brown dots and overlaid with revolving bands of brownish-gray. Operculum is horny and unguiculate. ANIMAL AND RADULA: According to Olsson (1965), a radular ribbon extracted from a shell 38.5 mm in length is small, with 62 closely packed multicuspid teeth. Length of the ribbon is 1.40 mm; width, 0.20 mm. The general pattern resembles that of Voluta musica Linnaeus, 1758 and Voluta ebraea Linnaeus, 1758; but there are differences in detail. The end cusps are large and broadly triangular; the intermediary cusps are smaller and are divided into primary, secondary, and tertiary size all variable in their individual shape . REMARKS: The soft anatomy of Voluta virescens was un- known until recently, a reflection of its deep-water habitat and general scarcity. However, recent dredging operations have brought in enough specimens to change its degree of abundance from quite rare to uncommon.

Voluta virescens Solander differs from both V. musica and V. ebraea by being much smaller and in having a very different color pattern

Range. Caribic Nicaragua / Honduras and south to Colombia.