Boone, Mollitsca, Cruises of "Ara" and "Alva" 311 



Material examined: One very fine shell with the animal 

 within, taken at Casa Blanca, Morocco, Mediterranean Sea, July 1, 

 1933, by the "Alva." 



Remarks : The true Triton's trumpet of Grecian mythology is 

 believed to be Murex tritonis Linne. The present shell, Cymatium 

 nodiferum (Lamarck), is said by Verany to be the one in use at 

 Nice as a trumpet or horn by the fishermen and peasants, a hole 

 near the apex of the shell being all that is required to convert it 

 into a horn capable of producing a distinctive noise. Verany states 

 that it is frequently used for the old-fashioned charivari, a noisy 

 serenade given to celebrate the marriage of ill-assorted couples. 



This species of mollusk is frequently used for food in the Medi- 

 terranean countries, being equally prized by Portuguese, Sicilian, 

 Algerian and Grecian peoples, many of whom eat it raw. The meat 

 is somewhat tough, in flavour not unlike that of scallops. It is 

 considered by modern dietitians to be rich in iodine and mineral 

 salts. 



Cymatium nodiferum (Lamarck) is conspicuous among the 

 living molluscan exhibits in most of the Aquaria along the Medi- 

 terranean. 



The shell is covered by a thin, yellowish brown epidermis, be- 

 neath which the colour pattern of the shell is seen to be a pale 

 flesh-tinged whitish, variegated by irregular spots and narrowed 

 stripes of chestnut brown. The aperture is porcellanous white. It 

 is the living snail with its graceful body of vermilion maculated 

 with diffused patches of reddish brown, the mantle white macu- 

 lated, the tentacles marked with two black lines, the sole of the 

 foot vivid orange, the operculum amber, which fascinates the ob- 

 server, as the giant snail achieves a graceful mobility despite the 

 thick, heavy shell. 



Technical description: The shell is oblong-conic, large, 

 thick, heavy, and opaque; the aperture and inner lip somewhat 

 porcellanous ; the exterior somewhat glossy, frequently eroded and 

 encrusted with foreign objects. The spire is elongated, whorls 

 nine, tumid, compressed upwards, the last one occupying about 

 three-fifths of the shell ; suture moderate. The external surface is 

 sculptured with four varices, the largest one being immediately 

 behind the lip on the body whorl, the others being similarly placed 

 on each of the body whorls ; these ridges are growth marks. The 

 entire surface is sculptured by prominent ridges, which are 



