''Erronea adusta'',
common name
In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...
the chocolate beauty or tanned/dark onyx cowry, 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
Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the ...
, a
cowry, a marine
gastropod
The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda ().
This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...
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 Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Cypraeidae, the cowries.
This species was formerly regarded as a subspecies of the onyx cowry (''
Erronea onyx'').
Description
The shells of these cowries reach on average of length. The dorsum surface of ''Erronea adusta'' is smooth, shiny and generally dark brown. The base is also dark brown, usually with orange teeth. The interior of the shell is pale purple.
Distribution
This species occurs in the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
along East Africa (mainly
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
,
Mascarene,
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
and
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
).
Habitat
''Erronea adusta'' lives in the tropical and subtropical zones, in shallow subtidal water.
References
* Verdcourt, B. (1954). ''The cowries of the East African Coast (Kenya, Tanganyika, Zanzibar and Pemba).'' Journal of the East Africa Natural History Society 22(4) 96: 129-144, 17 pls.
* Burgess, C.M. (1970). The Living Cowries. A. S. Barnes and Co, Ltd. Cranbury, New Jersey
External links
BiolibWoRMS
*
adusta
Gastropods described in 1810
{{Cypraeidae-stub