Thanks, Randy.  Your info helps a lot.  Much appreciated.

John

John and Cheryl Jacobs
COA 2024-2025 Oral/Silent Auction Chairs
Seffner, FL
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-----Original Message-----
From: Conchologists List <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Randy
Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2023 5:03 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CONCH-L] Cypraea tigris question

Hi John,
Genetic analysis has indeed been done on the tigris complex by Dr. 
Christopher Meyer. As discussed in the last edition of the Cowries Guide by
F. Lorenz, three of the four subspecies recognized in that work show
significant genetic differences while the fourth is recognized by
conchological features and geographic isolation (see the excerpt below from
the book.) The four subspecies are:
Cypraea tigris tigris (Linnaeus 1758),
C. tigris pardalis Shaw 1795,
C. tigris schilderiana Cate 1961,
C. tigris lorenzi Meyer & Tweedt 2017.
 From the Guide:
"This variable and widespread species is split into three subspecies which
are well supported genetically, but difficult to distinguish
conchologically. The Indian Ocean is inhabited by the nominate tigris, while
along the border between the Eastern Indian Ocean and the Pacific,
interbreeding with the Pacific pardalis takes place. There is no way to
safely distinguish shells from the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific. 
The Hawaiian schilderiana is here considered a subspecies because of subtle
but relatively constant shell differences. A third, genetically and
conchologically distinct population is found in the Marquesas (lorenzi)."

For those of us that study the cowries, most of the additional tigris taxa
named in the last couple of years are considered variations with no
taxonomic value.
I hope this helps,
Randy Bridges

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