Trona stercoraria

Trona stercoraria, common name the rat cowry or droppings cowry, is a species of sea snail, a cowry, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries.[1]

Trona stercoraria
A shell of Trona stercoraria a from Senegal, anterior end towards the right
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Clade: Caenogastropoda
Clade: Hypsogastropoda
Order: Littorinimorpha
Family: Cypraeidae
Genus: Trona
Species:
T. stercoraria
Binomial name
Trona stercoraria
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms[1]

Cypraea stercoraria Linnaeus, 1758 (basionym)

Description

The shells of these common cowries reach on average 50–75 millimetres (2.0–3.0 in) of length, with a minimum size of 26 millimetres (1.0 in) and a maximum size of 97 millimetres (3.8 in). They are very variable in pattern and colour. The shape ranges from oval to rhomboidal. The surface is smooth and shiny, the basic color is bluish, greenish or greyish, but it can be completely dark brown or whitish. Normally there is a dense dark brown spotting on the dorsum. The wide margins are usually dark brown and the anterior and posterior canals end into well developed 'rostra'. The base may be purplish, light brown, pinkish or white, with a long and narrow aperture and long brown, beige or white fine teeth with brown spacing. The 'fossula' is considerably protruding.

A shell of Trona stercoraria a from Senegal, dorsal view, anterior end towards the right
A shell of Trona stercoraria a from Senegal, lateral view, anterior end towards the right
A shell of Trona stercoraria a from Senegal, apertural view, anterior end towards the left

Distribution

Trona stercoraria occurs in west Africa along Cape Verdes, Senegal, Guinea, Cameroon, Gabon, São Tomé Island, the Congo and Angola.

Habitat

These cowries usually live in shallow waters under large rocks.

Subspecies
  • Trona stercoraria minima (Linnaeus, C., 1758) [2]
  • Trona stercoraria rattus (Lamarck, 1810) [3]
  • Trona stercoraria stercoraria (Linnaeus, 1758) [4] (synonyms : Cypraea conspurcata Gmelin, J.F., 1791; Cypraea fasciata Gmelin, J.F., 1791; Cypraea gibba Gmelin, J.F., 1791; Cypraea ligata Röding, P.F., 1798; Trona cineracea Sulliotti, G.R., 1924)
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References
  1. Trona stercoraria (Linnaeus, 1758). Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 6 January 2019.
  2. "Trona stercoraria minima". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 23 October 2010.
  3. "Trona stercoraria rattus". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 23 October 2010.
  4. "Trona stercoraria stercoraria". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 23 October 2010.
  • Bernard, P.A. (Ed.) (1984). Coquillages du Gabon [Shells of Gabon]. Pierre A. Bernard: Libreville, Gabon
  • Bernard, P.A. (Ed.) (1984). Coquillages du Gabon [Shells of Gabon]. Pierre A. Bernard: Libreville, Gabon. 140, 75 plates pp.
  • Lorenz & Hubert (2000). A guide to worldwide cowries. ConchBooks 1-584 page(s): 52
  • Burgess, C.M. (1985) Cowries of the World. Gordon verhoef, Seacomber Publications, South Africa, Cape Town. XIV + 289 pp. page(s): 111
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