Kingdom Animalia Superfamily Buccinoidea Phylum Mollusca Rank Species | Class Gastropoda Family Colubrariidae Genus Colubraria | |
 | ||
Similar Colubraria, Colubraria obscura, Pisania striata, Cancellariidae, Euthria cornea | ||
Colubraria reticulata or Cumia reticulata is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Colubrariidae.
Contents
It is commonly known as the vampire snail because it feeds on the blood of fishes when they are asleep. Colubraria reticulata are commonly found in rocky and coral environments that are tropical or subtropical and temperate seas.
Disttibution
The type locality is Sicily.
Feeding habits
The vampire snail possesses a long thin proboscis to feed on the blood of the fishes. Once contact is made between the proboscis and the skin of the fish, the proboscis extends its length to gain access to the blood vessel.
Secretion of Bioactive Molecules
Upon contact with the skin, anesthetic is secreted to numb the area. Common anesthetics from protein families ShK, Turripeptide, ADA, and CAP-ShK were found to be present during hematophagy. In addition, anticoagulants such as PS1, Meprin, and Kunitz were also present to prevent blood clotting. Furthermore, vasopressives were found and because the proboscis is thin, it is hypothesized for vasopressives to increase blood pressure to allow maximization of blood income and feeding time.
Turritoxin which is unique to the vampire snail, is also produced by coneshell. Although the function of turritoxin is specifically unknown to the vampire snail, scientists have looked towards coneshell and hypothesized that the use of turritoxin is of the same manner.