IANTHINA

‖I‐an″thi‐na (?), n.; pl. L. Ianthinæ (#), E. Ianthinas (#). [[NL., fr. L. ianthinus violet-blue, Gr. �; � violet + � flower.]] (Zoöl.) Any gastropod of the genus Ianthina, of which various species are found living in mid ocean; — called also purple shell, and violet snail. [Written also janthina.] ☞ It floats at the surface by means of a raft, which it constructs by forming and uniting together air bubbles of hardened mucus. The Tyrian purple of the ancients was obtained in part from mollusks of this genus.