Atlantic Deer Cowrie Snail – Macrocypraea cervus – Large

The Atlantic Deer Cowrie (Macrocypraea cervus, formerly Cypraea cervus) is one of the largest cowries. It is very variable in its coloration. The shell is usually reddish-brown with pale spots like a young fawn. Some also have a faintly streaked appearance with light bands and lack the pale spots. Their is a pale band down the length of all color forms where the two mantle edges meet. The mantle itself is darker grey-brown in color and is covered with a short, fine fringe.

Cowrie Snails are well known to shell collectors for their attractive shells and are popular among aquarists for algae control. They look like oval-shaped domes in appearance, much like the top half of a football (the American kind). Their shells are usually very shiny and have a \