CYPR^A.— Plate 1. 



are perfectly unique ; it seems cm-ious tliat Natiu'e should 

 not have exercised her accustomed prodigality in the per- 

 petuation of these species, for instead of being the solitary 

 living witnesses of an extinct period of the world's history 

 whose farma oidy remains to us in a fossQ state, they are 

 a new creation, framed with an exuberance of chai'acter 

 quite imapproached by any other species. They are both 

 in the finest possible condition, and may cei-tainly be re- 

 garded as the most valuable shells yet discovered. The 

 next in value ai-e the C. Broderipii and guttata ; of the 

 former, three specimens are known, two of which are in 

 this coimtry ; of the latter, five, of which we possess fom\ 

 Of distinguished rarities of smaller size may be mentioned 

 C. Cumingii, SaulitB, xanthodon, siinUis, contaminata and 

 teres, all in our collections. 



There is little to be said on the geographical distribution 

 of the Cowries except that they are strictly tropical. Only 

 one or two very small grooved species are found on our 

 own coast, and none larger than the C. lurida in the Medi- 

 terranean. The C. Scollii may be quoted as a tine exam- 

 ple of the New Holland region, and the C. aurora, which 

 is now a shell of fi'equent occurrence, of the Pacific. The 

 C. pantherina is brought in extraordinary abundance from 

 the Red Sea, but the great portion of the species are from 

 Mam-itius, Ceylon, and other parts of the eastern world. 



The genus Ci/praa has been so fidly and ably investigated 

 by Ml'. Gray and Mi'. Sowerby, that scarcely a species is 

 to be found which has not ah'cndy been described and 

 figured ; I have only, therefore, in the absence of any 

 novelty in kind, to contribute such observations as may 

 appear to be worthy of recording. 



Species 1. (Pig. a Mus. Saul, and b. Mus. Cuming.) 



CypRjEa Mauritiana. Cypr. testa subovatd, crassismnd, 

 dorso (jlhhoso-elevalo, lalerlhus aucjnlath, liasi concavo- 

 planululd, aperlurdvalde sinuosd, deniihus prominulis; 

 basi laterihusque nigriaanie-fuscis, dorso fuloo-fiisco, 

 subfasciaio, reliculd 'vmgidari nig ricante-f used super- 

 tecto, columelld allicante. 



The ]\Li.UEiTius Cowry. Shell subovate, very tliick, 

 back elevated into a kind of hump, sides angulated, 

 base concavely flattened, aperture very sinuous, teeth 

 rather prominent; base and sides blackish brown, 

 back light fulvous brown, obscurely banded, covered 

 over with a reticulated coating of blackish-brown, 

 columella whitish. 



Testa junior. (Pig. a.) 

 Fulvo-fusca, maculls liiteis flammeolis triangnlaribus 

 promiscue aid suLirregulariter trifasciatim ornatd. 

 Pulvous brown, ornamented with triangular yellowish 



flame-like spots arranged either promiscuously or in 



three irregidar bands. 



Testa juvenis. 



F/iIva, fusco fasciatim imdata. 



Yellow, with bands of waved brown. 

 LiNN.Eus. Syst. Nat. (12th edit.) p. 1176. 

 Hab. Island of Maiu'itius, Ceylon, &c. 



The form of this shell is cliicfly distinguished by the 

 hump-like elevation of the back, and conca\'ity of the base. 

 Its primitive colouring in the BuUa form is a pale yellow, 

 over which the fidvous brown spreads in bands of waves; 

 in an iutermecKate state the waves become agglomerated, 

 and leave the yellow in triangidar flame-like spots ; and 

 when the teeth are fuUy developed, the sides become 

 thickened with a rich dark blackish-brown coating which 

 is tliinly spread over the dorsal sm'face, opening into irre- 

 gular reticulations just as if its flow had been distm-bed by 

 the intermixtm'e of some oUy liquid. 



Such a variation of coloiu' as is exhibited in this shell at 

 different stages of gi'owth, has naturally given rise to 

 many errors among early writers which it is scarcely neces- 

 sary to enumerate. Gmclin describes it in its earliest state 

 as a Bidla, (Bulla cgprcea,) and in its intermediate state as 

 a species (Cypraa trifasciata,) distinct from the adult. 

 Chemnitz figau'ed a fuie example of the middle stage of 

 growth, such as I have represented at fig. a, as " The 

 Queen of Cowtics" {Cgprccaruni regina,) and other names 

 have been introduced of which no notice need be taken. 



The Ci/praa Mauritiana must be a moUusk of great 

 muscular power, for its shell is tridy the heaviest and 

 most solid of the series ; the enamel romid the sides is 

 deposited with remarkable thickness, and its appearance 

 altogether indicates a considerable degi'ee of energ-y in the 

 testaceous properties of its inhabitant. 



Species 2. (Mus. Said.) 



CyPR^A Arabica. Cgpr. testa ohlongo-ovatd, basi sitb- 

 planulntd, lateribus plus minusve incrassatis; dorso 

 livido-fusco indistiiicte fasciato, limis brevibus hiero- 

 gli/pMcis hie illic interruptis, vactiis orbictdaribus for- 

 mantilius, longitudinaliter ornato ; basi albicante, pins 

 minusve ruhido-fusco tincld, lateribus maculis fusco-ni- 

 gj-icantibus promiscue pictis ; dentibus rubido-fuscis, 

 extremitaiibus nigricantibus. 



The Arabic Cowry. Shell oblong-ovate, base rather flat- 

 tened, sides more or less thickened ; back livid-brown, 

 indistinctly banded, longitudinally ornamented with 

 short liieroglyphical lines, interrupted here and there 

 so as to form round vacant areas, base whitish ; more 



