WoRMS taxon details
Ovula ovum (Linnaeus, 1758)
216904 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:216904)
accepted
Species
Bulla ovum Linnaeus, 1758 · unaccepted (superseded combination)
Ovula alba Perry, 1811 · unaccepted (junior subjective synonym)
Ovula cygnea (Röding, 1798) · unaccepted (synonym)
Ovula oviformis Lamarck, 1801 · unaccepted (junior objective synonym)
Ovula papyracea Fischer von Waldheim, 1807 · unaccepted (synonym)
Ovula pygmaea (G. B. Sowerby I, 1828) · unaccepted (synonym)
Ovulum ovum (Linnaeus, 1758) · unaccepted (superseded combination and...)
superseded combination and unavailable genus name
Ovulum ovum var. pygmaea G. B. Sowerby I, 1828 · unaccepted (junior synonym)
Ovulum pygmaea G. B. Sowerby I, 1828 · unaccepted (junior subjective synonym)
Volva cygnea Röding, 1798 · unaccepted (synonym)
Xandarovula figgisae C. N. Cate, 1973 · unaccepted (junior subjective synonym)
marine, brackish, fresh, terrestrial
(of Bulla ovum Linnaeus, 1758) Linnaeus, C. (1758). <i>Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis</i>. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. [iii] + 824 pp. , available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 725 [details] Available for editors
[request]
page(s): 725 [details] Available for editors
[request]
Type locality contained in Papua New Guinean Exclusive Economic Zone
type locality contained in Papua New Guinean Exclusive Economic Zone [from synonym] [view taxon] [details]
Description Solid, ovate to pear-shaped shell, up to 12 cm. Exterior white, interior reddish-brown, operculum velvet black with a...
Description Solid, ovate to pear-shaped shell, up to 12 cm. Exterior white, interior reddish-brown, operculum velvet black with a pattern of tiny dots. Habitat: on algae or Alcyonarian colonies (on which it feeds) on shallow reefs. Distribution: Indo-Pacific. (Richmond, 1997). [details]
MolluscaBase eds. (2026). MolluscaBase. Ovula ovum (Linnaeus, 1758). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=216904 on 2026-05-16
Date
action
by
The webpage text is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 License
Nomenclature
original description
(of Ovula alba Perry, 1811) Perry, G. (1811). Conchology, or the natural history of shells: containing a new arrangement of the genera and species, illustrated by coloured engravings executed from the natural specimens, and including the latest discoveries. W. Miller, London, 4 pp. + 61 pls., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/41764832
page(s): Pl. 53 [details]
original description (of Ovula cygnea (Röding, 1798)) Röding, P. F. (1798). Museum Boltenianum sive Catalogus cimeliorum e tribus regnis naturæ quæ olim collegerat Joa. Fried Bolten, M. D. p. d. per XL. annos proto physicus Hamburgensis. Pars secunda continens Conchylia sive Testacea univalvia, bivalvia & multivalvia. Trapp, Hamburg, viii + 199 pp., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/16230659
page(s): 21 [details]
original description (of Ovula oviformis Lamarck, 1801) Lamarck, J. B. de. (1801). Système des animaux sans vertèbres, ou tableau général des classes, des ordres et des genres de ces animaux. <em>Published by the author and Deterville, Paris.</em> : viii + 432 pp., available online at http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/14117719 [details]
original description (of Bulla ovum Linnaeus, 1758) Linnaeus, C. (1758). <i>Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis</i>. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. [iii] + 824 pp. , available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 725 [details] Available for editors [request]
original description (of Ovulum ovum var. pygmaea G. B. Sowerby I, 1828) Sowerby, G. B. I. (1828). On the recent species of the genus <i>Ovulum</i>. <em>Zoological Journal.</em> 4: 145-162., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/27485061
page(s): 149 [details]
original description (of Ovula papyracea Fischer von Waldheim, 1807) Fischer von Waldheim, G. (1807). <i>Museum Demidoff, ou, Catalogue systématique et raisonné des curiosités de la nature et de l'art: données à l'Université Impériale de Moscou par son excellence Monsieur Paul de Demidoff. Tome III. Végétaux et Animaux</i>. Moscow: Imprimerie de Université Impériale de Moscou. 300 pp, 6 pls. , available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/58562487
page(s): 156. [details]
original description (of Xandarovula figgisae C. N. Cate, 1973) Cate, C. N. (1973). A systematic revision of the recent cypraeid family Ovulidae. <em>The Veliger.</em> 15 (supplement): 1-117., available online at http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/42495434 [details]
original description (of Volva cygnea Röding, 1798) Röding, P. F. (1798). Museum Boltenianum sive Catalogus cimeliorum e tribus regnis naturæ quæ olim collegerat Joa. Fried Bolten, M. D. p. d. per XL. annos proto physicus Hamburgensis. Pars secunda continens Conchylia sive Testacea univalvia, bivalvia & multivalvia. Trapp, Hamburg, viii + 199 pp., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/16230659
page(s): 21 [details]
basis of record Lorenz, F.; Fehse, D. (2009). <i>The living Ovulidae. A manual of the families of allied cowries: Ovulidae, Pediculariidae and Eocypraeidae</i>. Hackenheim: Conchbooks. 651 pp., 203 pls., 375 + numerous unnumb. text figs. [details]
page(s): Pl. 53 [details]
original description (of Ovula cygnea (Röding, 1798)) Röding, P. F. (1798). Museum Boltenianum sive Catalogus cimeliorum e tribus regnis naturæ quæ olim collegerat Joa. Fried Bolten, M. D. p. d. per XL. annos proto physicus Hamburgensis. Pars secunda continens Conchylia sive Testacea univalvia, bivalvia & multivalvia. Trapp, Hamburg, viii + 199 pp., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/16230659
page(s): 21 [details]
original description (of Ovula oviformis Lamarck, 1801) Lamarck, J. B. de. (1801). Système des animaux sans vertèbres, ou tableau général des classes, des ordres et des genres de ces animaux. <em>Published by the author and Deterville, Paris.</em> : viii + 432 pp., available online at http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/14117719 [details]
original description (of Bulla ovum Linnaeus, 1758) Linnaeus, C. (1758). <i>Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis</i>. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. [iii] + 824 pp. , available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 725 [details] Available for editors
[request]original description (of Ovulum ovum var. pygmaea G. B. Sowerby I, 1828) Sowerby, G. B. I. (1828). On the recent species of the genus <i>Ovulum</i>. <em>Zoological Journal.</em> 4: 145-162., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/27485061
page(s): 149 [details]
original description (of Ovula papyracea Fischer von Waldheim, 1807) Fischer von Waldheim, G. (1807). <i>Museum Demidoff, ou, Catalogue systématique et raisonné des curiosités de la nature et de l'art: données à l'Université Impériale de Moscou par son excellence Monsieur Paul de Demidoff. Tome III. Végétaux et Animaux</i>. Moscow: Imprimerie de Université Impériale de Moscou. 300 pp, 6 pls. , available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/58562487
page(s): 156. [details]
original description (of Xandarovula figgisae C. N. Cate, 1973) Cate, C. N. (1973). A systematic revision of the recent cypraeid family Ovulidae. <em>The Veliger.</em> 15 (supplement): 1-117., available online at http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/42495434 [details]
original description (of Volva cygnea Röding, 1798) Röding, P. F. (1798). Museum Boltenianum sive Catalogus cimeliorum e tribus regnis naturæ quæ olim collegerat Joa. Fried Bolten, M. D. p. d. per XL. annos proto physicus Hamburgensis. Pars secunda continens Conchylia sive Testacea univalvia, bivalvia & multivalvia. Trapp, Hamburg, viii + 199 pp., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/16230659
page(s): 21 [details]
basis of record Lorenz, F.; Fehse, D. (2009). <i>The living Ovulidae. A manual of the families of allied cowries: Ovulidae, Pediculariidae and Eocypraeidae</i>. Hackenheim: Conchbooks. 651 pp., 203 pls., 375 + numerous unnumb. text figs. [details]
Other
context source (HKRMS)
Morton, B. & Morton, J. (1983). <i>The sea shore ecology of Hong Kong</i>. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. 350 pp. , available online at https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004630673 [details]
additional source Liltved, W. R. (2000). Cowries and their relatives of southern Africa. A study of the southern African cypraeacean and velutinacean gastropod fauna. 2nd edn, Seacomber Publications, 224 pp.
page(s): 123. [details]
additional source Liu, J.Y. [Ruiyu] (ed.). (2008). [Checklist of marine biota of China seas]. <em>China Science Press.</em> 1267 pp. (look up in IMIS) [details] Available for editors [request]
additional source Steyn, D. G. & Lussi, M. (2005). <i>Offshore shells of southern Africa: A pictorial guide to more than 750 gastropods</i>. Published by the authors. pp. i–vi, 1–289.
page(s): 35 [details]
additional source Kawai, K. (2010). Pair Formation and Reproductive Behavior in the Egg Cowry Ovula ovum (Gastropoda: Ovulidae) in Southern Kyushu, Japan. <em>Venus (Journal of the Malacological Society of Japan).</em> 69(1-2): 49-58. [details] Available for editors [request]
additional source Spencer, H.G., Marshall, B.A. & Willan, R.C. (2009). Checklist of New Zealand living Mollusca. Pp 196-219. <em>in: Gordon, D.P. (ed.) New Zealand inventory of biodiversity. Volume one. Kingdom Animalia: Radiata, Lophotrochozoa, Deuterostomia.</em> Canterbury University Press, Christchurch. [details]
additional source Liltved, W. R. (2000). Cowries and their relatives of southern Africa. A study of the southern African cypraeacean and velutinacean gastropod fauna. 2nd edn, Seacomber Publications, 224 pp.
page(s): 123. [details]
additional source Liu, J.Y. [Ruiyu] (ed.). (2008). [Checklist of marine biota of China seas]. <em>China Science Press.</em> 1267 pp. (look up in IMIS) [details] Available for editors
[request]additional source Steyn, D. G. & Lussi, M. (2005). <i>Offshore shells of southern Africa: A pictorial guide to more than 750 gastropods</i>. Published by the authors. pp. i–vi, 1–289.
page(s): 35 [details]
additional source Kawai, K. (2010). Pair Formation and Reproductive Behavior in the Egg Cowry Ovula ovum (Gastropoda: Ovulidae) in Southern Kyushu, Japan. <em>Venus (Journal of the Malacological Society of Japan).</em> 69(1-2): 49-58. [details] Available for editors
[request]additional source Spencer, H.G., Marshall, B.A. & Willan, R.C. (2009). Checklist of New Zealand living Mollusca. Pp 196-219. <em>in: Gordon, D.P. (ed.) New Zealand inventory of biodiversity. Volume one. Kingdom Animalia: Radiata, Lophotrochozoa, Deuterostomia.</em> Canterbury University Press, Christchurch. [details]
Present Present in aphia/obis/gbif/idigbio Inaccurate Introduced: alien Containing type locality
Unreviewed
Description Solid, ovate to pear-shaped shell, up to 12 cm. Exterior white, interior reddish-brown, operculum velvet black with a pattern of tiny dots. Habitat: on algae or Alcyonarian colonies (on which it feeds) on shallow reefs. Distribution: Indo-Pacific. (Richmond, 1997). [details]
| Language | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| English | common egg cowrie | [details] |
| German | Gemeine Eischnecke | [details] |
| Japanese | ウミウサギガイ | [details] |
To Barcode of Life (6 barcodes)
To Biodiversity Heritage Library (1 publication)
To Biodiversity Heritage Library (2 publications) (from synonym Xandarovula figgisae C. N. Cate, 1973)
To Biological Information System for Marine Life (BISMaL)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Ovula ovum)
To GenBank (16 nucleotides; 7 proteins)
To Malacopics (Ovula ovum (Linnaeus, 1758) Kenya, Mombasa, Bambury Beach, by diving, collected 1985...
To USNM Invertebrate Zoology Mollusca Collection (from synonym Ovula cygnea (Röding, 1798))
To USNM Invertebrate Zoology Mollusca Collection
To Biodiversity Heritage Library (1 publication)
To Biodiversity Heritage Library (2 publications) (from synonym Xandarovula figgisae C. N. Cate, 1973)
To Biological Information System for Marine Life (BISMaL)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Ovula ovum)
To GenBank (16 nucleotides; 7 proteins)
To Malacopics (Ovula ovum (Linnaeus, 1758) Kenya, Mombasa, Bambury Beach, by diving, collected 1985...
To USNM Invertebrate Zoology Mollusca Collection (from synonym Ovula cygnea (Röding, 1798))
To USNM Invertebrate Zoology Mollusca Collection
Unreviewed
Hosted externally
