''Clypeomorus batillariaeformis'', common name : the necklace'' or ''channeled cerith, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

sea snail Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the ...

, a marine

gastropod The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...

mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is e ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Cerithiidae.

Description

The spiraled shell can vary between 8 mm and 30 mm in size.

Distribution

The distribution of ''Cerithium moniliferum'' includes the Indo-West Pacific.''Cerithium moniliferum''
sealifebase.org, accessed 3 May 2009. along

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, the Solomons, the

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

Islands,

Heron Island, Australia Heron Island is a coral cay located near the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern Great Barrier Reef, north-east of Gladstone, Queensland, Australia, and north-north-west of the state capital Brisbane. The island is situated on the leeward (w ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

; in the Indian Ocean along

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

and the Mascarene Basin and in the

Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; T ...

Life habits

These animals form large groups as the

tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravity, gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide t ...

recedes. Feeding on beach rock at a specific height above average low tide level, the snails slowly move about in clusters, conserving the moisture that allows them to respire out of water. (1961): Heron Island, Capricorn Group, Australia. ''Atoll Research Bulletin'' 82: 1–16
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Parasites

Parasites of ''Clypeomorus batillariaeformis'' include '' Lobatostoma manteri''.

References

* Dautzenberg, Ph. (1929). ''Mollusques testaces marins de Madagascar''. Faune des Colonies Francaises, Tome III * Drivas, J. & M. Jay (1988). ''Coquillages de La Réunion et de l'île Maurice''

External links

* Clypeomorus Gastropods described in 1966 {{Cerithiidae-stub