| Family: |
Cassidae (helmet and bonnet shells) |
| Max. size: |
18 cm SHL (male/unsexed) |
| Environment: |
benthic; marine; depth range 0 - 12 m |
| Distribution: |
Indo-Pacific: from East Africa, including Madagascar, Sri Lanka and the tropical islands of the Indian Ocean, through Indonesia and Melanesia, to eastern Polynesia; north to Taiwan Province of China and southern Japan, and south to northern Queensland and the Fiji Islands. |
| Diagnosis: |
|
| Biology: |
Shell well known as the main raw material from which cameos are cut. Species abundant only at the extreme western and eastern parts of its wide range, becoming rarer in its central part, corresponding with the Southeast Asian region (Ref. 349). Most common in fairly sheltered areas, on bottoms of coarse coral sand. Shallow subtidal waters. Preys on short-spined sea urchins (Ref. 349). |
| IUCN Red List Status: |
Not Evaluated (N.E.) Ref. 123251)
|
| Threat to humans: |
harmless |
| Country info: |
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