Relevant Synonyms Diala semistriata (Philippi, 1849) Alaba semistriata (Philippi, 1849) [Tillier and Bavay, 1905] see Ponder and de Keyser (1992) for a detailed synonymy Misidentification -  photo: W. Engl

SHORT DESCRIPTION Shell small, translucent, high conical with 2-2.5 protoconch whorls and 7-8 nearly flat teleoconch whorls. Surface of whorls rather smooth, except for a well-marked groove just above the suture; body whorl with peripheral angle and more spiral grooves on the base. Aperture ovate, with a thin edge and thin columella. color : translucent or whitish with brown flames or checkered pattern of spots; some shell totally dark or nearly white. common size : 3-4 mm. DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS This species only resembles Gibborissoa virgata, from which it is readily distinguished by the lack of varixes and having a peripheral angle on the body whorl. BIOLOGY / ECOLOGY Unknown. habitat : Indo-Pacific habitat on algae, seagrass, coral rubble in shallow subtidal sites (Ponder and de Keyzer, 1992).

1st Mediterranean record Israel, 1984 [1935]. DISTRIBUTION Worldwide: throughout the Indo-Pacific including Red Sea, and from East Africa to Japan, Hawaii, Marquesas, Tuamotu, northern part of Australia (see map in Ponder and de Keyzer, 1992); recorded in the Suez Canal by Tillier and Bavay (1905) and as common in Lake Timsah by Moazzo (1939). Mediterranean: collected by Haas in 1935, between Yaffo and Bet Yam, Israel (Mienis, 1984a); successively recorded from Bardawil lagoon, Egypt (Barash and Danin, 1977) and Tripoli, Lebanon (Bogi and Khairalla, 1987). ESTABLISHMENT SUCCESS Moderately common in Bardawil lagoon, very rare elsewhere but there are several separate and reliable records. speculated reasons for success : - MODE OF INTRODUCTION Via the Suez Canal. IMPORTANCE TO HUMANS None.

KEY REFERENCES Mienis H.K., 1976a. An other immigrant from the Red Sea: Diala semistriata. Levantina, 4: 30. Mienis H.K., 1984a. An early record of Diala varia from the Mediterranean coast of Israel. Levantina, 50: 583-584. Moazzo P.G., 1939. Mollusques testacés marins du Canal de Suez. Mémoires de l'Institut d'Egypte, 38: 1-283, pl. 1-14 + frontispice, maps 1-4. [Alaba semistriata p. 184].   Ponder W.F. and de Keyzer R., 1992. A revision of the genus Diala (Gastropoda: Cerithioidea: Dialidae). Invertebrate Taxonomy, 6: 1019-1075. Tillier L. and Bavay A., 1905. Les mollusques testacés du Canal de Suez. Bulletin de la Société Zoologique de France, 30: 170-181. FEEDBACK / COMMENTS TO AUTHORS

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