Notocypraea piperita

Notocypraea piperita
	Shell of Notocypraea piperita from Australia at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano
	Ventral view
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Littorinimorpha
Family:	Cypraeidae
Genus:	Notocypraea
Species:	N. piperita
Binomial name
	Notocypraea piperita; Gray, 1825
Synonyms
	Cypraea piperita Gray, 1825; Cypraea bicolor Gaskoin, 1849; Cypraea piperita var. leucochroa Sullioti, 1924; Erronea angustata piperita (Gray, 1825); Erronea angustata piperita var. reticulifera Gray;

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

External links

Biolib
WoRMS
Encyclopedia of Life
"Notocypraea piperita piperita". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
Molluscs of Tasmania
Flmnh

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