Aloha,
Chris you mentioned you had found "few true melanistic Cypraea tigris from
the Philippines."  What is true melanism?  Does it have a different meaning
in the shell community than "an increased amount of black or nearly black
pigmentation of an individual or kind of organism"? (-Webster)
I've bought melanistic tigris, or shells expressing an increased amount of
black or nearly black pigmentation.  All have been on the young side,
borderline juvenile.  Later I've found young schilderiana in the same state.
  After a stay in my aquarium they start to build up white nacre.  Left long
enough they eventually turn typical color.  It could be a change in
environment from transplantation to my aquarium, but I never see adults as
dark as juveniles in the wild.   It would seem some tigris have a melanistic
stage that they out grow.
Then there's the other side of the coin, the mauritiana.  I see the same
ones year after year getting more beat up and putting on more dark nacre.  I
always thought this was trauma-induced melanism, but JJ says its diet?
Mahalo,
Shea



>From: Chris Takahashi <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: Conchologists List <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: MELANISTIC TIGRIS...
>Date: Tue, 6 Dec 2005 13:21:41 -0500
>
>Aloha!
>I viewed the pix & it does have sporadic melanistic
>dorsal blotching but I wouldn't call it a melanistic
>cowry. It's just a dark dorsal colored Tiger. I've
>seen & found Tigers colored like this through-out the
>Pacific. It would be safe to say that the location
>isn't a contested issue rather the monicker of being a
>melanistic cowry is.
>
>My guess is the ID label is correct in it's locality
>but classifying it as a melanistic shell may be
>stretching the description of the coloration. It's
>still a nice shell & very colorful.
>Mahalo!  CHRIS:)
>
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