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CYPR^A C AURIGA L. var. ROSEA nov. 



By J. KIDSON TAYLOR. 



(Read before the Society, November 13th, 1912). 



I HAVE what I believe to be an unnoticed and hitherto undescribed 

 colour variety of Cyprcea caurica Linne, a generally abundant and 

 common species in the eastern seas. 



In this variety the back or dorsal region of the shell is of a 

 beautiful rosy-fiesh colour, quite distinct from the normal, typical 

 colouring of this species. The ground-colour is profusely sprinkled, 

 all over its surface, with minute dots of a deeper shade of the same 

 rosy colour ; in shape this variety is that of var. oblongata Melv., but 

 with slightly thicker side margins, which are ornamented by a few 

 scattered reddish brown spots, some of which are partly obscured by 

 the enamel. 



The base of the shell and teeth are white, the interstices of the 

 latter being of a very faint tint of pale flesh colour. 



One of the specimens is very remarkable in being distinctly three 

 banded ; these bands are quite sharply defined on the ground-colour, 

 with the small dots almost obsolete, thus bearing quite a close 

 resemblance to C. carneola Linn^. 



The three shells are quite full grown, and not immature as at first 

 sight would appear. 



Their habitat is the Island of Mauritius, a locality from which so 

 many beautiful, pellucid forms have been obtained. 



The dimensions of the largest of the three specimens, are: 

 Length 51 mm.; diam. 27 mm. 



For this variety I propose the varietal name rosea, as indicating 

 the general appearance of the shell. 



The typical form of C. caurica is oblong-oval, the lateral margins 

 very strongly thickened, base flesh-coloured, with the teeth strong and 

 white ; back whitish, with three more or less distinct bands irregularly 

 speckled with fulvous small dots, occasionally forming a large central 

 blotch ; the margins irregularly spotted with large purplish-brown 

 blotches. 



There are five named varieties already described viz : — 



var. concava described in 1870, by Sowerby (from H. Owen's 



MSS.) in his "Thesaurus Conchyliorum;" a subrostrated monstrosity 



of small size from Gambia, W. Africa. 



var. obscura described in 1882, by Rossiter in Proc. Linn. 



Soc. N.S.W.; a blackish-brown, narrow-margined form from N. 



Caledonia. 



