Vitta virginea

Vitta virginea, the virgin nerite, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Neritidae.^[3]

Vitta virginea Temporal range: Miocene - Recent PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N [1]
Shells of Vitta virginea
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Neritimorpha
Order:	Cycloneritida
Family:	Neritidae
Genus:	Vitta
Species:	V. virginea
Binomial name
Vitta virginea (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms[2]
Nerita bahiensis Récluz, 1850 Nerita cardinalis Röding, 1798 Nerita chlorina Link, 1807 Nerita fasciola Récluz, 1850 Nerita listeri L. Pfeiffer, 1840 Nerita marmorata Link, 1807 Nerita nigrocincta Röding, 1798 Nerita phrygia Dillwyn, 1823 Nerita tigris Récluz, 1850 Nerita virginea Linnaeus, 1758 (original combination) Neritina (Vitta) virginea (Linnaeus, 1758) (superseded combination) Neritina braziliana G. B. Sowerby II, 1849 Neritina cajennensis Rigacci, 1866 Neritina matoni Mörch, 1852 Neritina minor Metcalf, 1904 Neritina trabalis Mörch, 1852 Neritina virginea (Linnaeus, 1758) (unaccepted combination) Theodoxus virginea (Linnaeus, 1758)

Distribution

This species is widespread from the Bahamas, Bermuda, Cuba, West Indies, Greater and Lesser Antilles, Dominica, Puerto Rico, Central America (Panama, Guatemala, Costa Rica), Brazil, Venezuela, Suriname, Colombia, Mexico, Texas and Florida.^[2][4][5]

Habitat

Vitta virginea can withstand large changes in salinity and therefore may live in freshwaters, in marine and in brackish waters. These sea snails occur in rivers and streams, in estuaries and in the sea, on sand, silt and stones, brackish ponds and mangroves.^[2][6]

A shell of Vitta virginea from Barbados, on display at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano

Description

Shells of Vitta virginea can reach an average size of 6–25 millimetres (0.24–0.98 in).^[4] These colorful grass-flat snails show extremely variable pattern and color. They are semiglobular, with 3 or 4 whorls. The aperture is oval, with thin lips. Operculum is usually black. The polished shell surface may be black, grey or white, yellowish, olive, red and purple, with various stripes or waves, spots and lines.^[7][8]

Biology

They are herbivorous (algae) and diadromous. They are involved in massive upstream migrations.^[2][9]

Shells of Vitta virginea