Red snail
| Red snail | ||||||||||||
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Cypraecassis rufa , Réunion |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Cypraecassis rufa | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The red helmet snail , the red balaclava , the bull's mouth or the fiery furnace ( Cypraecassis rufa ) is a snail from the family of helmet snails (genus Cypraecassis ), which is widespread in the Indo-Pacific . It feeds on sea urchins .
features
The egg-shaped, bulbous, very thick and heavy snail shell of Cypraecassis rufa , surrounded by several calloused, knotty belts, has a red to orange-brown colored surface with darker and lighter brown spots. Two white longitudinal furrows run along the base of the body. The thread is short and pointed. The spindle and outer lip have deep purple wrinkles. The edges of the lips are very thick and colored vividly red, especially the outer one. The basic color is creamy orange. In adult snails, the house reaches around 15 cm, sometimes up to 18 cm in length. The operculum is rounded, egg-shaped and about a tenth the length of the mouth of the case.
distribution
The red helmet snail is found in the northern Indian Ocean on the coast of East Africa , around Madagascar , Sri Lanka and Indonesia as well as in the Pacific Ocean to eastern Polynesia , north to Taiwan and southern Japan and south to northern Queensland and Fiji . The snail is most common in the far west and east of its range, otherwise less common.
habitat
Red helmet snails prefer protected areas in the intertidal zone and below on coral reefs on coarse sand with algae at depths of up to 12 meters.
food
Cypraecassis rufa feeds on short-pricked sea urchins , but also on very well-fortified species such as diadem sea urchins . By secreting a mucous pad, it protects itself from the prey's spines, which are softened by secreted sulfuric acid and usually eaten with it.
Importance to humans
Cypraecassis rufa is a popular collector's item due to its snail shell, so that humans can be considered a main enemy. The case is widely used for carving cameos . So far, however, the snail has not been included in the Red List worldwide.
Individual evidence
- ^ C. Brüggemann (1838): The natural history in faithful illustrations and with a detailed description of the same. Eduard Eisenach publisher, Leipzig 1838. Die Weichthiere, p. 70. Die rothe Sturmhaube. (Buccinum (Cassis) rufum L.)
Web links
- Heinke Schultz, Shirtingen (2005): Interactions between mollusks and sea urchins (PDF; 3.7 MB), Club Conchylia Informations 37 (1/2) 41-48. P. 6: Cypraecassis rufa eats a diadem sea urchin Astropyga radiata .
- Fischhaus Zepkow: Family Cassidae - Helmet snails
- Underwater Kwajalein: Cypraecassis rufa (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Cassidae - Helmet and bonnet shells (identification key for the helmet snails , English, on the FAO website ), p. 535: Cypraecassis rufa (Linnaeus, 1758). From: JM Poutiers: Gastropods . In: Kent E. Carpenter, Volker H. Niem (eds.): FAO Species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 1: Seaweeds, corals, bivalves and gastropods. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, 1998.