MR ART WEIL wrote:
>
> Dear Andy;-
>        I agree that if you have hybrids, the hybrid-ing species
> (parents) should be nearby. In their absence, some other designation
> should be used-----up to and including "species".
>   Art
>
Absolutely true.Regarding Volutidae, when facing a weird specimen, hard
to classify, hybridism must be the last considered hypothesis and shall
be given up if several specimens with the same features are found in a
restricted area.Then isolated population with archaic character
(reversion?) is the most probable interpretation.Not only Hybridism
needs parents living nearby, but needs also that each parental
populations are on their "end of the cline".
I know only two cases of possible hybridism in Volutidae:
One in genus Amoria (ellioti+undulata), not the so-called "intermedia"
(presumed ellioti+macandrewi) which is a good species by itself, and the
other more dubious in genus Livonia (roadnightae+mammilla=quisqualis).
Scaphella worki Coltro can be an isolated population (thus a good
subspecies) of Scaphella robusta.
Pat.