''Harpa major'', commonly known by the English vernacular names large harp, or alternatively as the major harp,The Encyclopedia of Shells 1998 Kenneth R. Wye is a notable

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of large

predatory Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

sea snail Sea snails are slow-moving marine (ocean), marine gastropod Mollusca, molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the Taxonomic classification, taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguishe ...

. These fascinating marine gastropod mollusks belong to the family

Harpidae The Harpidae, known as the harp snails, are the members of a taxonomic family of large predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks. This family is temporarily classified in the superfamily Neogastropoda incertae sedis. MolluscaBase eds. (2 ...

, a group collectively known as the harp snails and their close allies.Rosenberg, G. (2015). Harpa major Röding, 1798. In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=208166 on 2016-02-28

Description

The shells of ''Harpa major'' vary considerably in size among individuals, typically measuring between approximately 60 mm and 130 mm in length at maturity. Average adult specimens of this species reach about inches (approximately 8.9 cm) in length, and their shells are characterized by an ovate overall body shape and possess a notably heavily calloused spire. The columella, which forms the central, lower portion of the shell's inner whorl, typically displays a characteristic dark brown coloring that distinguishes it. From an anatomical perspective, the snail possesses a notably long siphon, a relatively large mouth aperture, and a very large foot in proportion to its shell size. These anatomical features are extensively utilized when the snail employs its methods for hunting prey. This species functions as a voracious

nocturnal Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatur ...

predator, primarily feeding on various

benthic The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning "the depths". ...

crustaceans Crustaceans (from Latin meaning: "those with shells" or "crusted ones") are invertebrate animals that constitute one group of Arthropod, arthropods that are traditionally a part of the subphylum Crustacea (), a large, diverse group of mainly aquat ...

found inhabiting sandy seafloor substrates, and is notably capable of preying on

crabs Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura (meaning "short tailed" in Greek), which typically have a very short projecting tail-like abdomen, usually hidden entirely under the thorax. Their exoskeleton is often thickened and ha ...

that are nearly as large as the snail itself. Harpa major 005

Distribution

This marine species is distributed across several distinct geographical locations within the Indo-Pacific region. These documented occurrences include areas off the coasts of

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

, specifically encompassing regions near

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

and

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

; its presence is also noted within the

Mascarene The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Their na ...

Basin in the western Indian Ocean; and it is further found off the islands of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

in the central Pacific.

References

* Walls, J.G. (1980). ''Conchs, tibias and harps. A survey of the molluscan families Strombidae and Harpidae''. T.F.H. Publications Ltd, Hong Kong.

External links

Gastropods.com: Information and shell images for ''Harpa major''

Ladd, H.S. (1977). Cenozoic fossil mollusks from western Pacific islands; Gastropods (Eratoidae through Harpidae). U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper. 533: i–iv, 1–84, pls 1–23

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

Gastropods described in 1798 {{Harpidae-stub