A new species of Cerithium (Gastropoda: Cerithiidae) from the South China Sea.

Specimens of a new species of Cerithiidae, Cerithium mangrovum n. sp., were collected during two surveys along the coasts of Hainan and Guangdong Province, China. Usually associated with potamidid snails, this species often occurs in large populations between the mid-high tidal zones in a range of habitats, including mangroves, grass beds, silt, mud, and coral reefs. C. mangrovum n. sp. has a slender and tapering shell and the straight-sided whorl bears three aligned beaded spiral cords. The thick outer lip has a wide posterior sinus. It morphologically resembles C. coralium Kiener, 1841. The shell of C. coralium is usually larger and wider and the spiral cords are not as beaded as in C. mangrovum n. sp. Its radula has a rachidian tooth with a shallow, wide, median basal projection while the rachidian tooth of C. mangrovum n. sp. has a moderately long, median basal projection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]