''Cymbiola nobilis'' (noble volute) is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of sea snail, a marine gastropod

mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is e ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Volutidae ''Volutidae'', common name volutes, are a taxonomic family of predatory sea snails that range in size from 9 mm to over 500 mm. They are marine gastropod mollusks. Most of the species have no operculum. Distribution This family of sea snails ...

, the volutes. The snail's shell is commonly collected in the sea shell trade, which has resulted in

overharvesting Overexploitation, also called overharvesting, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Continued overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource, as it will be unable to replenish. The term ap ...

of the snail.

Taxonomy and naming

The snail is a member of the phylum Mollusca, the class Gastropoda, the family

, and the genus ''

Cymbiola ''Cymbiola'' is a genus of large predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Volutidae, the volutes.Bail, P. (2010). Cymbiola Swainson, 1831. In: Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S.; Rosenberg, G. (2010) World Marine Mollusca database. A ...

''. It was first discovered in 1786.National Parks Board, Singapore Government
/ref>

Subspecies

* ''Cymbiola (Cymbiola) nobilis nobilis'' (Lightfoot, 1786) * ''Cymbiola (Cymbiola) nobilis tamariskae'' Sutanto & Patamakanthin, 2004

Distribution

''Cymbiola nobilis'' is widespread in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

from

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

, peninsular Malaysia,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

and

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

.Sealife Base
/ref>

Description

Shells of ''Cymbiola nobilis'' can reach a length of , with an average size of six centimeters. Females tend to be larger than the males. These fairy large, thick and heavy shells are glossy, with plaits on the columella. They have a wide variety of patterns.Beechey, Des

Australian Museum The shell colour may be beige, orange or yellow with a zig-zag red or brown pattern. Sometimes these shalls are completely black. The fleshy body of the snail is black with bright yellow or orange spots. Pigment producing cells infect nearby cells so that they also produce pigment. Cells that are infected once become immune to producing pigment again. As a result, the coloring of the snail's shell forms the characteristic pattern.

Habitat

This species lives in a marine environment and can be found on sandy reef flats and sandy areas near coral rubble and seagrasses.
/ref> Populations of ''Cymbiola nobilis'' are present in small and isolated areas and are often close by, but separated by geographic barriers such as water channels. Each separate range has its own shell form and color pattern.

Conservation Status

The snail is considered vulnerable. The number of ''Cymbiola nobilis'' has been greatly reduced by reef destruction and collection as food and for the marine curio and shell trade. The snail was once commonly found in reefs around Singapore, but they have become much scarcer. The government of Singapore has stated that laws are needed to restrict the collection of wildlife fauna such as ''Cymbiola nobilis''.

Behavior

Reproduction

The snails are to a certain extent hermaphrodites, but separate sexes exist, and the snails reproduce through sexual reproduction. The female is fertilized by the male internally, and the female responds by depositing fertilized eggs. The egg capsules laid by the female contain multiple embryos. It takes about seven days for the eggs to hatch into larvae. Embryos develop into free-swimming planktonic marine larvae ( trocophore) and later into juvenile

veliger A veliger is the planktonic larva of many kinds of sea snails and freshwater snails, as well as most bivalve molluscs (clams) and tusk shells. Description The veliger is the characteristic larva of the gastropod, bivalve and scaphopod ...

s. Altogether, the snail goes through eight stages of development before becoming a full-fledged snail.

Diet

The ''C. nobilis'' is carnivorous, and preys on small animals such as bivalves, other mollusks and

echinoderm An echinoderm () is any member of the phylum Echinodermata (). The adults are recognisable by their (usually five-point) radial symmetry, and include starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, and sea cucumbers, as well as the s ...

Bibliography

* Lightfoot, J. (1786). A Catalogue of the Portland Museum, lately the property of the Dutchess Dowager of Portland, deceased; which will be sold by auction by Mr. Skinner & Co. on Monday the 24th of April, 1786, and the thirty-seven following days, Skinner & Co., London * Bail, P. & Limpus, A. 1998. Revision of Cymbiola (Cymbiolacca) from eastern Australia. The "pulchra complex". Evolver:Rome * Poppe, G.T. & Goto, Y. 1992. Volutes Mostra Mondiale: Cupra Marittima, Italy * Weaver, C.S. & du Pont, J.E. 1970. The Living Volutes. Delaware Museum of Natural History:Greenville, Delaware.

References

External links

Encyclopedia of life

Catalogue of life
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2442383 Volutidae Gastropods described in 1786