Kingdom Animalia Class Gastropoda Family Ovulidae Scientific name Simnialena marferula | Phylum Mollusca Superfamily Cypraeoidea Subfamily Simniinae Rank Species | |
Simnialena marferula is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Ovulidae, the ovulids, cowry allies or false cowries. It lives on the sea whip, Leptogorgia virgulata.
Contents
Description
The shell of is shiny and smooth, and the shape of an elongated egg, with a flat base which shows a long, narrow, slit-like aperture. The shell grows to 2 cm long and the coil of the typical gastropod shell is not visible. The colour varies from ivory white to pink.
Distribution
Simnialena marferula occurs in shallow water on the eastern coast of the United States, Colombia, Jamaica and Brazil.
Ecology
Simnialena marferula has a symbiotic relationship with the sea whip Leptogorgia virgulata on which it lives. The snail's white colour is derived from the pigments it absorbs and which it incorporates into its shell after eating debris from the coral.