difference between cypraea zebra and cervinetta

[paul monfils]

Hi Taylor,  Welcome to the site.  I'm not sure exactly what you are asking here, but a couple of observations.  First, given the locality where you collected the shell, it can't be Cypraea cervinetta, which is a Pacific species.  It would have to be either Cypraea zebra or Cypraea cervus.  Cypraea cervus has solid white spots, so your shell would definitely be Cypraea zebra.  The stripes you mentioned (which is what Cypraea zebra was named for) are actually a sign of immaturity.  When Cypraea zebra is very immature, it has only stripes, no spots at all.  As it gets older, spots begin to form along the two sides, but the top still shows the stripes.  Only when it is fully mature do the spots cover most of the top of the shell - what we call the dorsum.