Pustularia cicercula is a species of sea snail, a cowry, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries.[1]

Pustularia cicercula
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Order: Littorinimorpha
Family: Cypraeidae
Genus: Pustularia
Species:
P. cicercula
Binomial name
Pustularia cicercula
Synonyms[1]
  • Cypraea cicercula Linnaeus, 1758
  • Pustularia (Pustularia) cicercula (Linnaeus, 1758)

Subspecies

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The following subspecies are recognized :[1]

  • Pustularia cicercula cicercula (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Pustularia cicercula takahashii Moretzsohn, 2007
  • Pustularia cicercula tricornis (Jousseaume, 1874)
  • Pustularia cicercula tuamotensis Lorenz, 1999
  • Pustularia cicercula avrilae Heiman, 2009: synonym of Pustularia cicercula tuamotensis Lorenz, 1999
  • Pustularia cicercula lienardi (Jousseaume, 1874): synonym of Pustularia cicercula tricornis (Jousseaume, 1874)

Description

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The length of the shell attains 20.3 mm, lateral diameter 13.6 mm, dorsoventral diameter 11.8 mm

The shell is highly inflated, its extremities produced and slightly upturned; the granulose dorsal surface bears a shallow central crease.[2]

Distribution

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This species and its subspecies occur in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean off Kenya, the Mascarene Basin, Mauritius, Réunion and Tanzania.

A single fossil of the type species was collected from the post-Tertiary limestones of the New Hebrides.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Pustularia cicercula (Linnaeus, 1758). WoRMS (2010). Pustularia cicercula (Linnaeus, 1758). In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.eu/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=216886 on 11 October 2010 .
  2. ^ Ladd, H.S. (1977). Cenozoic fossil mollusks from western Pacific islands; Gastropods (Eratoidae through Harpidae). U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper. 533: i–iv, 1–84, pls 1–23   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  • Jousseaume, F., 1874. Description de quelques espèces nouvelles de coquilles appartenant aux genres Murex, Cypraea & Natica. Revue et Magasin de Zoologie Pure et Appliquée (3)2: 3-25
  • Verdcourt, B. (1959). The cowries of the East African Coast: Supplement II. JEANHS XXIII (100): 130–134
  • Heiman, E.L. & Mienis, H.K., 2008. - Cypraea tricornis Jousseaume, 1874: a study of the type material. Triton 18: 9-10
  • Lorenz F. (2014). Monograph of the genus Pustularia (Gastropoda: Cypraeidae). Harxheim: ConchBooks. 130 pp
  • Liu, J.Y. [Ruiyu] (ed.). (2008). Checklist of marine biota of China seas. China Science Press. 1267 pp.
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