A highly unique melongenid with very rounded whorls and finely striated sculpture, Taphon clavella is currently the only species in the genus Taphon. An endemic species of Oman, it has a very restricted distribution between Masirah Island and Salalah and is typically found in shallow waters near rocks. Even locally it is a rare species and almost all known specimens were beached, live individuals being extremely scarcely seen. Its enigmatic rarity means nothing is known about its diet except that it is probably carnivorous. According to Donald and Eloise Bosch (“Seashells of Oman”, 1982) two colour forms exist, including a paler form patterned with brown broken lines and sparse blotches (shown) and a darker form showing fine, continuous dark brown and white spiral lines. The paler form is more common, and the relationships between these two forms require more research as apparently no intergrades are known. Mature specimens exhibit a certain degree of outer lip thickening and teeth formation. It possesses a thick, brown, corneous operculum when alive. Despite its highly characteristic shell morphology, its systematic placement has been much debated and remains unsettled. Initially it was described as Fusus striatus Sowerby I, 1833 with the clearly erroneous locality “China”, which turned out to be a junior homonym of striatus Röding, 1798. Then, it was moved to genus Pyrula (now synonym of Ficus in Ficidae) where Pyrula clavella Reeve, 1847 was described. Finally, the monotypic genus Taphon was erected to house it, which was then moved to Melongenidae. Its morphology is rather distinct from other melongenids, and thus even the family placement may change in the future when radula, soft parts, and/or DNA data becomes available. Typical shell length around 60mm, very large specimens may reach 80mm. – adapted from Chong Chen’s Kogkhulion post