Puperita pupa | |
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Puperita pupa: A. ventral view, B. dorsal view; C. Operculum external view; D. Operculum internal view. E. detail of the color standard. | |
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Four Shells of Puperita pupa showing color variation, one showing the ventral side and on the lower left, an operculum | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Mollusca |
Class: | Gastropoda |
Subclass: | Neritimorpha |
Order: | Cycloneritida |
Family: | Neritidae |
Genus: | Puperita |
Species: | P. pupa
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Binomial name | |
Puperita pupa (Linnaeus, 1767)
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Puperita pupa, commonly known as zebra nerite, is a species of small sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Neritidae, the nerites.[1][2]
The shell is thin but strong, globular, not presenting a prominent spire. There are 2 to 3 whorls, the outer lip is thin and sharp, the columellar area is polished and has a broad wall. The largest known specimens reach 10.6 mm. Th shell coloration is variable but is characterized by axial bands of black and white like a zebra. The opening is gray with an ocher-colored parietal callus area, and the operculum is bright yellow [3][4]
Puperita pupa is a nerite that is widely distributed in the area of the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico:
This species occurs in brackish water on the West Indian island of Dominica.[6]