Haminoea cymbalum

Haminoea cymbalum, sometimes known as the Cymbal bubble snail, is a species of sea snail or bubble snail, a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusc in the family Haminoeidae, one of the families of bubble snails.

Haminoea cymbalum
Haminoea cymbalum, with orange peel for scale.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Heterobranchia
clade Euthyneura
clade Euopisthobranchia
clade Cephalaspidea
Superfamily:
Haminoeoidea
Family:
Haminoeidae
Genus:
Haminoea
Species:
H. cymbalum
Binomial name
Haminoea cymbalum
Adams, 1850[1]

Distribution

Haminoea cymbalum is found in the Indo-West Pacific oceans from Hawaii and Christmas Island. It is not a common species, but locally large populations can be found.[2][3]

Description

The soft tissues of H. cymbalum are lime green with orange and purple markings.[4] As with all Haminoeidae, it is herbivorous and feeds on algae. It secretes a metabolite which has deterrent properties towards carnivorous fish.[3]

References
  1. WoRMS (2010). Haminoea cymbalum (A. Adams, 1850). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=214538 on 2010-12-14
  2. image:CymbalBubbleShell4k.jpg Sighting report in WikiCommons
  3. A. Fontana, M. L. Ciavatta, L. D'Souza, E. Mollo, C. G. Naik, P.S. Parameswaran, S. Wahidulla, G. Cimino (2001)."Selected chemo-ecological studies of marine opisthobranchs from Indian coasts". J. Indian Inst. Sci. July-Aug, 81, 403-415.
  4. W. B, Rudman (1971)."On the Opisthobranch Genus Haminoea Turton & Kingston". Pac Sci 25(4): 545-559.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.