Kary Mar
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Melo melo ([Lightfoot], 1786)
A shell snail from the family Volutidae, colloquially known as roller snails. Members of the family live in warm and temperate seas, especially on the coasts of Australia. They are mostly carnivorous and dig in sandy soil for prey, which often consists of other mollusks.
Due to its enormous size and its predatory lifestyle, Melo melo is not an animal for our home aquariums. The case is a sought-after collector's item for making decorative items. The snail is also used for human consumption. In rare cases, this snail produces real pearls, but cannot be specifically "manipulated" into pearl production through human influence.
The large predatory snail feeds on other snails, which it hunts in sandy soils and suffocates them with its large foot and then consumes them.
At first glance, one would only classify the snails as predators of other snails, but they also have an important role: they protect various aquatic plants from excessive snail predation by herbivorous small snails.
Color: The snail itself has black and white markings, but the inside of the shell is caramel colored.
Synonymised names
Cymbium indicum (Gmelin, 1791) · unaccepted
Cymbium maculatum Röding, 1798 · unaccepted (synopnym)
Cymbium melo ([Lightfoot], 1786) · unaccepted
Melo indicus Broderip, 1826 · unaccepted > junior subjective synonym
Melo melo melo ([Lightfoot], 1786) · unaccepted
Voluta anguria [Lightfoot], 1786 · unaccepted (synonym)
Voluta citrina Fischer von Waldheim, 1807 · unaccepted (synonym)
Voluta indica Gmelin, 1791 · unaccepted (synonym)
Voluta melo [Lightfoot], 1786 · unaccepted (original combination)
Direct children (2)
Subspecies Melo melo melo ([Lightfoot], 1786) accepted as Melo melo ([Lightfoot], 1786)
Subspecies Melo melo tessellatus (Lamarck, 1811) accepted as Melo tessellatus (Lamarck, 1811)
A shell snail from the family Volutidae, colloquially known as roller snails. Members of the family live in warm and temperate seas, especially on the coasts of Australia. They are mostly carnivorous and dig in sandy soil for prey, which often consists of other mollusks.
Due to its enormous size and its predatory lifestyle, Melo melo is not an animal for our home aquariums. The case is a sought-after collector's item for making decorative items. The snail is also used for human consumption. In rare cases, this snail produces real pearls, but cannot be specifically "manipulated" into pearl production through human influence.
The large predatory snail feeds on other snails, which it hunts in sandy soils and suffocates them with its large foot and then consumes them.
At first glance, one would only classify the snails as predators of other snails, but they also have an important role: they protect various aquatic plants from excessive snail predation by herbivorous small snails.
Color: The snail itself has black and white markings, but the inside of the shell is caramel colored.
Synonymised names
Cymbium indicum (Gmelin, 1791) · unaccepted
Cymbium maculatum Röding, 1798 · unaccepted (synopnym)
Cymbium melo ([Lightfoot], 1786) · unaccepted
Melo indicus Broderip, 1826 · unaccepted > junior subjective synonym
Melo melo melo ([Lightfoot], 1786) · unaccepted
Voluta anguria [Lightfoot], 1786 · unaccepted (synonym)
Voluta citrina Fischer von Waldheim, 1807 · unaccepted (synonym)
Voluta indica Gmelin, 1791 · unaccepted (synonym)
Voluta melo [Lightfoot], 1786 · unaccepted (original combination)
Direct children (2)
Subspecies Melo melo melo ([Lightfoot], 1786) accepted as Melo melo ([Lightfoot], 1786)
Subspecies Melo melo tessellatus (Lamarck, 1811) accepted as Melo tessellatus (Lamarck, 1811)
