Naria miliaris
A shells of Naria miliaris, dorsal view, anterior end towards the right
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Order: Littorinimorpha
Family: Cypraeidae
Genus: Naria
Species:
N. miliaris
Binomial name
Naria miliaris
(Gmelin, 1791)
Synonyms[1]
  • Cypraea inocellata Gray
  • Cypraea miliaris Gmelin, 1791
  • Erosaria miliaris (Gmelin, 1791)

Naria miliaris, common name the millet cowry or the inocellate cowry or the military 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 very common cowries reach on average 32–38 millimetres (1.3–1.5 in) of length, with a minimum size of 17 millimetres (0.67 in) and a maximum size of 56 millimetres (2.2 in). The dorsum surface of these smooth and shiny shells is generally pale brown or yellowish, with several small white spots. The base is white or pink, with several fine teeth. In the living cowries the mantle is pale brown and greyish, with long tree-shaped sensorial papillae. This species is quite similar to Naria lamarckii, but in Naria miliaris the edges of the shell are white, without any spots.

A shells of Naria miliaris, lateral view, anterior end towards the right
Apertural view of a shells of Naria miliaris

Distribution

This species is distributed in the Indian Ocean along Madagascar and Tanzania and in the western Pacific Ocean to Australia, along Japan, East China, Taiwan, Vietnam, East Thailand, East Malaysia, Flores, North Borneo, Java, Philippines and northwestern Australia.

References

  • Burgess, C.M. (1970). The Living Cowries. AS Barnes and Co, Ltd. Cranbury, New Jersey
  • Dautzenberg, Ph. (1929). Mollusques testaces marins de Madagascar. Faune des Colonies Francaises, Tome III
  • Verdcourt, B. (1960). The cowries of the East African Coast: Supplement III. JEANHS XXIII (104): 281-285.
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