WoRMS

WoRMS taxon details

Cypraea tigris Linnaeus, 1758

Live tiger cowrie from Hawaii

AphiaID

216843 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:216843)

Classification

Status

accepted

Rank

Species

Type taxon of

Cypraea Linnaeus, 1758
Cypraea (Tigris) Troschel, 1863
Tigris Troschel, 1863
Vulgusella Jousseaume, 1884

Parent

Cypraea Linnaeus, 1758

Original name

Cypraea tigris Linnaeus, 1758

Synonymised names

Cypraea (Vulgusella) tigris Linnaeus, 1758 · unaccepted

Cypraea tigris f. semipicta Bozzetti, 2020 · unaccepted (nomenclaturally unavailable name...)

nomenclaturally unavailable name (established as a form)

Direct children (31)

Ordering

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Subspecies Cypraea tigris buyi Thach, 2025
Subspecies Cypraea tigris chiapponii Bozzetti, 2023
Subspecies Cypraea tigris conspicua Bozzetti, 2023
Subspecies Cypraea tigris lorenzi C. P. Meyer & Tweedt, 2017
Subspecies Cypraea tigris maculostriata Bozzetti, 2024
Subspecies Cypraea tigris pardalis G. Shaw, 1794
Subspecies Cypraea tigris peterstimpsoni T. Cossignani & Allary, 2022
Subspecies Cypraea tigris schilderiana C. N. Cate, 1961
Subspecies Cypraea tigris thomi Thach, 2025
Subspecies Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Cypraea tigris amboolee W. R. Steadman & Cotton, 1943 accepted as Cypraea tigris pardalis G. Shaw, 1794 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Subspecies Cypraea tigris benoisti T. Cossignani, 2023 accepted as Cypraea tigris pardalis G. Shaw, 1794 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Subspecies Cypraea tigris bonisolii Bozzetti, 2023 accepted as Cypraea tigris pardalis G. Shaw, 1794 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Forma Cypraea tigris f. semipicta Bozzetti, 2020 accepted as Cypraea tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (nomenclaturally unavailable name (established as a form))
Subspecies Cypraea tigris lyncichroa Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758
Variety Cypraea tigris var. chionia Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. flavida Dautzenberg, 1893 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > nomen nudum)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. flavonitens Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. fuscoapicata Coen, 1949 accepted as Cypraea tigris pardalis G. Shaw, 1794 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. hinnulea Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. incana Sulliotti, 1924 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. ionthodes Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. laminata Sulliotti, 1924 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. lyncichroa Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. nephelodes Lancaster, 1928 accepted as Cypraea tigris pardalis G. Shaw, 1794 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. nigrescens J. E. Gray, 1824 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. russonitens Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. tristis Sulliotti, 1924 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. tuberculifera Sulliotti, 1924 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Variety Cypraea tigris var. zymecrasta Melvill, 1888 accepted as Cypraea tigris tigris Linnaeus, 1758 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)
Subspecies Cypraea tigris volai W. R. Steadman & Cotton, 1943 accepted as Cypraea tigris pardalis G. Shaw, 1794 (unaccepted > junior subjective synonym)

Environment

marine

Original description

Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. [The system of nature through the three kingdoms of nature, according to classes, orders, genera, species, with characters, differences, synonyms, places.]. Impensis Direct. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. 1(10) [iii], 824 p., available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 721 [details] Available for editors

[request]

Taxonomic citation

MolluscaBase eds. (2026). MolluscaBase. Cypraea tigris Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=216843 on 2026-03-19

Taxonomic edit history

Date

action

1997-02-22 16:55:09Z

created

Vanden Berghe, Edward

2000-07-18 15:57:33Z

changed

Vanden Berghe, Edward

2011-06-08 21:32:57Z

checked

Moretzsohn, Fabio

2011-12-19 16:43:08Z

changed

Rosenberg, Gary

Licensing

The webpage text is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License

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Nomenclature

original description Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. [The system of nature through the three kingdoms of nature, according to classes, orders, genera, species, with characters, differences, synonyms, places.]. Impensis Direct. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. 1(10) [iii], 824 p., available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 721 [details] Available for editors

[request]

basis of record Burgess, C.M. (1970). The Living Cowries. AS Barnes and Co, Ltd. Cranbury, New Jersey. (look up in IMIS) [details]

Other

additional source Branch, G. M. (2002). Two Oceans. 5th impression. David Philip, Cate Town & Johannesburg. , available online at http://books.google.es/books?id=W_2QB8ftLgcC [details]

additional source Kay, E. A. (1979). Hawaiian marine shells. Reef and shore fauna of Hawaii. Section 4: Mollusca. Bernice P. Bishop Museum Special Publications. xviii + 653 pp., available online at http://hbs.bishopmuseum.org/pubs-online/pdf/sp64-4.pdf
page(s): 202 [details]

additional source Lorenz F. & Hubert A. (2000) A guide to worldwide cowries. Edition 2. Hackenheim: Conchbooks. 584 pp.
page(s): 65 [details]

additional source Burgess C.M. (1985). Cowries of the world. Cape Town: Gordon Verhoef, Seacomber Publications. xiv + 289 pp.
page(s): 76 [details]

additional source Dodge H. 1953. A historical review of the mollusks of Linnaeus. Part 2. The class Cephalopoda and the genera Conus and Cypraea of the class Gastropoda. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 103(1): 1-134., available online at http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/handle/2246/422
page(s): 79 [details]

additional source Meyer C.P. & Tweedt S.M. (2017). A new subspecies of Cypraea tigris Linnaeus 1758 (Gastropoda: Cypraeidae). Acta Conchyliorum. 16: 59-68. [details]

additional source Steyn, D. G. & Lussi, M. (2005). Offshore shells of southern Africa: A pictorial guide to more than 750 gastropods. Published by the authors. pp. i–vi, 1–289.
page(s): 42 [details]

additional source Pilsbry, H. A. (1909). On some deformed Cypraea tigris from the collection of A. Da Costa Gomez. The Nautilus. 23(7): 85-86, pls. 7-8., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/5314487 [details]

additional source Harris, W. (1935). Cypraea tigris Linné in the Hawaiian Islands. The Nautilus. 49(2): 39-41., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8527670 [details]