Cypraea leucodon
Encyclopedia
Cypraea leucodon, common name
the white-toothed cowry, is a rare cowry
, a species
of sea snail
, or marine
gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae
, the cowries.
This species can be found from the Philippines
and New Guinea
to the Indian Ocean
.
. In the late 1960s and early 1970s the third and fourth specimens were found.
By the 1980s, they were being found with regular frequency, and were available on the market for about $5000. By 2000, they were "common" enough to be available for about $1500 in "gem" condition, and less than $1000 for lower quality specimens.
with whitish spots of varying size and degrees of contrast. The dorsal mantle stripe is very distinctive in this species.
The living animal has a mottled (blackish-brown and light tan) mantle with short and long colorless papillae, a blackish siphon and tan foot. A number of subspecies and forms have been described including: C. leucodon leucodon (pyriform nominate); angioyna (slight tooth differences); tenuidon (smaller, heavily spotted and rounder); and escotoi (small, dark and very round).
Common name
A common name of a taxon or organism is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism...
the white-toothed cowry, is a rare cowry
Cowry
Cowry, also sometimes spelled cowrie, plural cowries, is the common name for a group of small to large sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries...
, a species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of sea snail
Snail
Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
, or marine
Marine (ocean)
Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae
Cypraeidae
Cypraeidae, common name the cowries , is a taxonomic family of small to large sea snails. These are marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Cypraeoidea, the cowries and cowry allies.-Shell description:...
, the cowries.
This species can be found from the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
to the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
.
History
Until the late 1960s, this species was known from only two specimens: one in the National Museum of London, England, and one in the Harvard University Museum of Comparative ZoologyMuseum of Comparative Zoology
The Museum of Comparative Zoology, full name "The Louis Agassiz Museum of Comparative Zoology", often abbreviated simply to "MCZ", is a zoology museum located on the grounds of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is one of three museums which collectively comprise the Harvard Museum...
. In the late 1960s and early 1970s the third and fourth specimens were found.
By the 1980s, they were being found with regular frequency, and were available on the market for about $5000. By 2000, they were "common" enough to be available for about $1500 in "gem" condition, and less than $1000 for lower quality specimens.
- Cypraea leucodon leucodon forma escotio. This form was described in 2004.
Description
The color of the shell of the white-toothed cowry varies from a chocolate-brown to butterscotchButterscotch
Butterscotch is a type of confectionery whose primary ingredients are brown sugar and butter, although other ingredients such as corn syrup, cream, vanilla, and salt are part of some recipes...
with whitish spots of varying size and degrees of contrast. The dorsal mantle stripe is very distinctive in this species.
The living animal has a mottled (blackish-brown and light tan) mantle with short and long colorless papillae, a blackish siphon and tan foot. A number of subspecies and forms have been described including: C. leucodon leucodon (pyriform nominate); angioyna (slight tooth differences); tenuidon (smaller, heavily spotted and rounder); and escotoi (small, dark and very round).