Description

Also known as Cowry, Eglantine Cowry, Eyed Cowry, Porcelain Lynx.

Found in small groups, during the day under coral slabs, stones and half exposed crevices of coral and rocky reefs, out foraging for food at night.
They feed nocturnally on sponges.
Length - 8cm
Depth - 0-20m
Widespread Indo-Pacific

One of the most beautiful their mantle papillae resemble a shaving brush

Cypraeidae have beautiful shells and equally beautiful mantles.
The Cowries are probably the most admired and sought after by shell collectors.
Cowries have few predators, but the mollusc-eating cones like Conus textile and octopus can inject venom into the cowry's flesh through a small hole and then sucks out the contents.
The mantle is like a cloak around the shell, highly muscular and when it contracts it forces water through the tubular siphon to propel itself rapidly through the water. Ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyncina_lynx