Notocypraea piperita
| Notocypraea piperita | |
|---|---|
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| Shell of Notocypraea piperita from Australia at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano | |
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| Ventral view | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| (unranked): | clade Caenogastropoda clade Hypsogastropoda clade Littorinimorpha |
| Superfamily: | Cypraeoidea |
| Family: | Cypraeidae |
| Genus: | Notocypraea |
| Species: | N. piperita |
| Binomial name | |
| Notocypraea piperita Gray, 1825 | |
| Synonyms | |
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Notocypraea piperita, common name peppered cowrie, is a species of sea snail, a cowry, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries.
Description
Notocypraea piperita has a shell reaching a size of 16-30 mm. The dorsum surface usually shows pale brown or peach-coloured transversal bands on a paler background, while the base is whitish or yellowish, with small dark spots on the ventral margin.
Habitat
This cowry lives subtidally on rocks.
Distribution
This species and its subspecies occur in the seas along southern Australia and northern Tasmania.
Subspecies
- Notocypraea piperita bicolor Gaskoin, 1849
- Notocypraea piperita piperita Gray, 1825
References
- Lorenz F. & Hubert A. (2000) A guide to worldwide cowries. Edition 2. Hackenheim: Conchbooks. 584 pp
- Lorenz F. (2005) Taxonomic notes on two poorly known species of Notocypraea (Gastropoda: Cypraeidae). Visaya 1(5):16-21