Trona stercoraria
| Trona stercoraria | |
|---|---|
 | |
| A shell of Trona stercoraria a from Senegal, anterior end towards the right | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| (unranked): | clade Caenogastropoda clade Hypsogastropoda clade Littorinimorpha |
| Superfamily: | Cypraeoidea |
| Family: | Cypraeidae |
| Genus: | Trona |
| Species: | T. stercoraria |
| Binomial name | |
| Trona stercoraria (Linnaeus, 1758) | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
|
Cypraea stercoraria Linnaeus, 1758 (basionym) | |
Trona stercoraria, common name the Rat Cowry or Droppings Cowry, is a species of sea snail, a cowry, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries.[1]
Description
The shells of these common cowries reach on average 50–75 millimetres (2.0–3.0 in) of length, with a minimum size of 26 millimetres (1.0 in) and a maximum size of 97 millimetres (3.8 in). They are very variable in pattern and colour. The shape ranges from oval to rhomboidal. The surface is smooth and shiny, the basic color is bluish, greenish or greyish, but it can be completely dark brown or whitish. Normally there is a dense dark brown spotting on the dorsum. The wide margins are usually dark brown and the anterior and posterior canals end into well developed 'rostra'. The base may be purplish, light brown, pinkish or white, with a long and narrow aperture and long brown, beige or white fine teeth with brown spacing. The 'fossula' is considerably protruding.
Distribution
Trona stercoraria occurs in west Africa along Cape Verdes, Senegal, Guinea, Cameroon, Gabon, São Tomé Island, the Congo and Angola.
Habitat
These cowries usually live in shallow waters under large rocks.
Subspecies
- Trona stercoraria minima (Linnaeus, C., 1758) [2]
- Trona stercoraria rattus (Lamarck, 1810) [3]
- Trona stercoraria stercoraria (Linnaeus, 1758) [4] (synonyms : Cypraea conspurcata Gmelin, J.F., 1791; Cypraea fasciata Gmelin, J.F., 1791; Cypraea gibba Gmelin, J.F., 1791; Cypraea ligata Röding, P.F., 1798; Trona tumulosa Hidalgo, J.G., 1906; Trona cineracea Sulliotti, G.R., 1924)
References
- 1 2 Trona stercoraria . WoRMS (2009). Trona stercoraria. Accessed through the World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=225254 on 23 October 2010.
- ↑ Gastropods.com : Trona stercoraria minima; accessed : 23 October 2010
- ↑ Gastropods.com :Trona stercoraria stercoraria rattus; accessed : 23 October 2010
- ↑ Gastropods.com : Trona stercoraria stercoraria; accessed : 23 October 2010
- Bernard, P.A. (Ed.) (1984). Coquillages du Gabon [Shells of Gabon]. Pierre A. Bernard: Libreville, Gabon
- Bernard, P.A. (Ed.) (1984). Coquillages du Gabon [Shells of Gabon]. Pierre A. Bernard: Libreville, Gabon. 140, 75 plates pp.
- Lorenz & Hubert (2000). A guide to worldwide cowries. ConchBooks 1-584 page(s): 52
- Burgess, C.M. (1985) Cowries of the World. Gordon verhoef, Seacomber Publications, South Africa, Cape Town. XIV + 289 pp. page(s): 111