Luria gilvella Lorenz, 2002
Gilvella
cowry, 11-25mm
Luria gilvella was recently
differentiated from the similar Luria
isabella based on a variety of shell and animal characteristics. However,
it is often not easy to tell them apart from just the shells. Here in the Marshalls,
the L. gilvella shell tends to be small and stout, pale yellow in coloration
and often but not always lacking the longitudinal black lines present in L.
isabella. The mantle is more of a translucent gray rather than the nearly
opaque black of L. isabella. While some specimens of L. gilvella
and L. isabella are easy to distinguish, some are difficult to tell
apart. The specimen figured below may in fact not be L. gilvella. Specimens
of L. gilvella have been identified from the Marshalls and western
Polynesia across the Indo-Pacific to parts of the coast of Africa.
Updated
1 April 2008
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