Cassis flammea

Cassis flammea is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cassidae, the helmet snails and bonnet snails.[1]

Cassis flammea
Five views of a shell of Cassis flammea
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Caenogastropoda
clade Hypsogastropoda
clade Littorinimorpha
Superfamily:
Tonnoidea
Family:
Cassidae
Subfamily:
Cassinae
Genus:
Cassis
Species:
C. flammea
Binomial name
Cassis flammea

Distribution

Cassis flammea is found in Florida, the Caribbean, and Bahamas. Its abundance has decreased due to overcollecting in some areas.[2]

Description

It has a shell with shades of reddish-brown with wavy stripes. There are dark stripes on the outer lip of the shell. The lip around the aperture forms a triangle shape. The shell may reach a maximum of 7 inches in length.[2] The shell may be covered by algae or other sessile marine organisms.

The maximum recorded shell length is 154 mm.[3]

Cassis flammea feeding on algal mat in sand, Bamboo Point, San Salvador Island, Bahamas

Habitat

Cassis flammea inhabits shallow tropical waters, in the depth range of 10 to 35 ft, usually in the sand around reefs.

The minimum recorded depth for this species is 1 m; maximum recorded depth is 12 m.[3]

Feeding habits

These sea snails feed on sea urchins, which they typically hunt at night.[2]

References
  1. Cassis flammea (Linnaeus, 1758). WoRMS (2010). Cassis flammea (Linnaeus, 1758). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=419777 on 14 August 2010 .
  2. Humann P. (1992). Reef creature Identification, Edited by Ned Deloach. New World Publications, Inc., pp. 206–207.
  3. Welch J. J. (2010). "The "Island Rule" and Deep-Sea Gastropods: Re-Examining the Evidence". PLoS ONE 5(1): e8776. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0008776.
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