GASTEROPODS 377 



these animals the natives of some of the Bahama Islands are themselves 

 called "Conchs." The rich pink color of the shell is very striking. 



There are perhaps seventy-five or eighty species of Strombus inhabit- 

 ing the tropical seas, and many of them are highly prized by collectors 

 on account of their great beauty. 



FAMILY CYPBJEIDJE 



GENUS Cyprcea 



Cyprcea is one of the " aristocratic " genera. Whether the shell 

 or the animal itself is considered, there is probably no genus of 

 mollusks which offers so much of beauty and interest to the col- 

 lector and student. The genus is a tropical one, and finds its 

 metropolis among the coral-fringed islands of the equatorial 

 Pacific. Despite their brilliant colors and general attractiveness, 

 the cowries for such is their popular name are very modest and 

 shy ; they prefer to hide among rocks, where they may be secure 

 from molestation, for probably their conspicuous appearance is a 

 real source of danger to them. In the animal of Cyprcea the mantle 

 is provided with two large lateral lobes, which are reflexed and 

 meet over the top of the shell ; thus, when the mantle is fully 

 extended, the shell is entirely concealed. These mantle lobes are 

 often furnished with numerous forked, tufted, or ramified fila- 

 ments. The foot is long; there is no operculum. The color of 

 the animal is often very striking in its intensity. A description 

 of the cowry-shell is hardly necessary, so familiar is every one 

 with it. A deposit of enamel is made all over the shell, and its 

 painting and decoration, usually very elaborate, is reserved for 

 the adult as a final process in the artistic completion of its home. 

 The aperture is as long as the shell, is channeled at both ends, 

 and is toothed along both margins. The spire is insignificant and 

 is concealed by layers of enamel. In the young the shell has a 

 very different appearance, resembling a sharp-lipped Oliva, and 

 its scheme of coloration may be entirely different from that em- 

 ployed by the adult. 



Among the Cyprceidce, are many remarkable species. The splen- 

 did Cyprata aurantia, a native of the Fiji Islands, is one of the 

 shells most sought after by enthusiastic collectors. The natives 



