No photo available
Mole cowrie
Talparia talpa
Valid name (WoRMS, AphiaID 216894, checked 2026-10-31).
- English
- Mole cowrie
- Scientific
- Talparia talpa
- Dhivehi
- No recorded Dhivehi name
- Group
- Cowries
- Family
- Cypraeidae (cowries)
- Maximum size
- Up to about 10.5 cm (shell length)
- Depth and habitat
- Sea floor (benthic), recorded from 0 to 10 m
- IUCN status
- NE · Not EvaluatedNot Evaluated (NE)
Description
The mole cowrie has a long, cylindrical, glossy shell banded with dark and pale brown, and a dark brown to black base. It lives on reefs and is active at night.
In the Maldives
Recorded from the Maldives: museum specimens (n=5); iNaturalist research-grade observations in the Maldives (n=11, 8 observers).
Sources
- sealifebase.se /summary/Talparia-talpa.html
- marinespecies.org /aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=216894
- inaturalist.org /taxa/371270
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Cypraea_talpa_(alive).jpg
Dhivehi name source: No species-level Dhivehi name found in Dhivehi Wikipedia, SeaLifeBase (country: Maldives) or MRS/MMRI invertebrate publications.