Bistolida hirundo (Linné, 1758)
Left: Scuba, 20 ft, exposed and crawling on live coral (Porites sp.), at night. Apra Harbor, Guam. Collected by Bob Abela on July 1987. Center & Right: Snorkeling, 5 ft, under calcareous algae (Halimeda sp.) growing over coral rubble. Apra Harbor, Guam. Collected by Bob Abela on 07 December 2004.
Distribution: Indo-West Pacific.
Habitat: A shallow water species, usually found under coral rubble. May be within the sponge it feeds upon.
Availability: Difficult to find alive, most turn up within Apra Harbor. Dead specimens turn up with regularity in Agat Bay.
Size: Guam specimens typically between 10 and 15 mm.
Comments: Compare with Bistolida ursellus and B. kieneri.
References:
Abbott, R. Tucker & S. Peter Dance. Compendium of Seashells. p. 92.
Burgess, C. M. 1985. Cowries of the World. p. 156.
Cate, Crawford N. 1969. The Cowry Species Living at Guam. The Veliger 12(1):128. pl. 25, fig. 54.
Cernohorsky, Walter O. 1972. Marine Shells of the Pacific. Revised ed. p. 100. pl. 19, fig. 112.
Heiman, E. L. 2004. Diagnosing Cowry Species. p. 51, 84.
Hinton, Alan. 1972. Shells of New Guinea and the Central Indo-Pacific. p. 22. pl. 11, fig. 17-18.
Kira, Tetsuaki. 1965. Shells of the Western Pacific in Color, Vol 1. p. 47. pl 20, fig. 7.
Lorenz, Felix & Alex Hubert. 2000. A Guide to Worldwide Cowries. 2nd ed. p. 169-170; pl. 77, fig. 1-15, 19-22, 29-30.
Springsteen, F. J. & F. M.Leobrera. 1986. Shells of the Philippines. p. 92. pl. 24, fig. 18.
Walls, Jerry. G. 1979. Cowries. Revised ed. p. 83.
Wilson, Barry. 1993. Australian Marine Shells, Part One. p. 176. pl. 33, fig. 11 a-c.