''Vitta zebra'', commonly known as the zebra nerite, is a

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), ...

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 ...

, a marine

gastropod Gastropods (), commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, freshwater, and fro ...

mollusk Mollusca is a phylum of protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Neritidae Neritidae, common name the nerites, is a Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic Family (biology), family of small to medium-sized saltwater and freshwater snails which have a gill and a distinctive Operculum (gastropod), operculum. MolluscaBase eds. (202 ...

.{MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Vitta zebra (Bruguière, 1792). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1366118 on 2021-09-27

Description

''Vitta zebra'' have globular shells with a length of around . Their coloration can be highly variable, from dark brown to yellow with straight, curved, or zigzagging black lines. The stripes vary in width, and may sometimes be absent or interspersed with white stripes between black. Body coloration is commonly dark brown with transverse black stripes and spots.

Distribution

''Vitta zebra'' is native to the northeastern coastline of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

and nearby islands in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

, including

French Guiana French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

and parts of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

(

mouth A mouth also referred to as the oral is the body orifice through which many animals ingest food and animal communication#Auditory, vocalize. The body cavity immediately behind the mouth opening, known as the oral cavity (or in Latin), is also t ...

of the Amazon River) and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

(mouth of the

Orinoco River The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers approximately 1 million km2, with 65% of it in Venezuela and 35% in Colombia. It is the List of rivers by discharge, f ...

In the aquarium

The zebra nerite snail is frequently sold to aquarists. These specimens are typically wild caught, since the snail is difficult to breed in captivity. This snail is typically sold as an

algae eater Algae eater or algivore is a common name for any bottom-dwelling or filter-feeding aquatic animal species that specialize in feeding on algae and phytoplanktons. Algae eaters are important for the fishkeeping hobby and many are commonly kept by aq ...

as it will constantly scrape the glass, hardscape and substrate of the aquarium for algae with its rasping mouth. They are capable of surviving in fresh water, though they require a high PH. A low enough PH will slowly destroy the snail's shell. If an aquarium does not have enough algae, it may be difficult to get them to eat pellet food and they may starve. Like most nerite snails, the zebra nerite may frequently attempt to escape from its aquarium; thus, a lid is necessary to house the species.

References

* Eichhorst T.E. (2016). Neritidae of the world. Volume 2. Harxheim: Conchbooks. pp. 696–1366

External links

Bruguière J.G. (1792). Catalogue des coquilles envoyées de Cayenne, à la Société d'histoire naturelle de Paris, par M. Le Blond. Actes de la Société d'Histoire Naturelle de Paris. 1: 126-129
Neritidae Gastropods described in 1792 {{Neritidae-stub