Biodiversity & Conservation

Arctic cowrie - Trivia arctica

Trivia arctica

Image Sue Scott - The Arctic cowrie Trivia arctica. Image width ca 4 cm.
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Distribution map

Trivia arctica recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

Why do the maps differ?

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Trivia arctica is not listed under any importance categories.

Taxonomy icon Taxonomy Taxon English term
Phylum Mollusca Snails, slugs, mussels, cockles, clams & squid
Class Gastropoda Snails, slugs & sea butterflies
Authority (Pulteney, 1799)
Recent synonyms None
Map icon Recorded Distribution in Britain and Ireland The arctic cowrie is found mainly on the north and west coasts of Britain and around Ireland. It is most common where its ascidian prey occurs.
Habitat information icon Habitat information Found mainly in the sublittoral, on rocky coastlines and occasionally on the lower shore.
Text page icon Description Trivia arctica has a small thickly calcified, glossy, egg shaped shell with a length of around 10 mm and width of 8 mm. The upper surface of the shell is reddish-brown while the lower surface is flattened and white. There are no spots on the shell, although the fleshy lobes of the mantle may bear spots. The shell aperture is long and narrow. Closely spaced, thickened ridges run around the width of the shell. When the animal is active the fleshy lobes of the mantle wrap around the shell so that it is almost totally covered. The mantle and the rest of the animal is pale in colour.
Identifying features
  • Egg shaped shell with flattened apertural surface.
  • Shell length around 10 mm, width around 8 mm.
  • Long narrow aperture present.
  • Upper surface of shell is reddish-brown while the underside is white.
  • Thickened ridges running around the width of the shell.
  • There are no markings on the shell.
  • The animal itself is pale in colour.
Additional information icon Additional information The shell of Trivia arctica may be confused with that of Trivia monacha, which is slightly larger and has three dark spots down the long axis of the shell. Trivia arctica feeds on ascidians such as Botryllus schlosseri.

This review can be cited as follows:

Catherine MacDougall 2008. Trivia arctica. Arctic cowrie. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 04/02/2012]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=4515>