This species is called "money cowrie" because the shells were historically widely used in many Pacific and Indian Ocean countries as shell money before coinage was in common usage.
Description and characteristicsedit
It is a quite small cowry, up to 3 cm (1.2 in), irregular and flattened, with very calloused edges and roughly subhexagonal. The color is pale (from white to dirty beige), but the dorsum seems transparent, often greenish grey with yellowish margins, with sometimes darker transverse stripes and a delicate yellow ring. The opening is wide and white, with pronounced denticules. The mantle of the live animal is mottled with black and off-white.
The shell of Monetaria moneta varies widely in shape and color, with some of these varieties having been described as full species. As a result, this species has numerous taxonomic synonyms.
The underside of a live Monetaria moneta with the mantle partially retracted
This cowrie lives in intertidal rocky areas and shallow tide pools among sea weed, coral remains, and empty bivalve shells.[3] It can be found on and under rocks in shallow water and on exposed reefs at low tide. It feeds on algae and marine vegetation growing on loose rocks and pieces of dead coral.
The shell is still used in divination rituals in some African religions.[3]
In the State of Kerala, in India, special money cowrie shells (which are known in Malayalam as കവിടിKavidi) are used for divination as part of Hindu astrology, as Prashnam. For Prashnam, 108 shells of Monetaria moneta are rotated a number of times and the blessings of God and one's Guru are invoked. A portion of the Kavadis are separated and counted to find out the ruling planet at that time. The results of the Prasna horoscope (a horoscope formulated at the time of arrival of the persons) are compared with the results of the Prasnam, and the predictions are pronounced on that basis.
Referencesedit
^ abWoRMS : Monetaria moneta; accessed : October 20, 2010
^"Monetaria moneta". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
Verdcourt, B. (1954). The cowries of the East African Coast (Kenya, Tanganyika, Zanzibar and Pemba). Journal of the East Africa Natural History Society 22(4) 96: 129-144, 17 pls.
External linksedit
On-line articles with Cypraea moneta in the HAWAIIAN SHELL NEWS (1960–1994)
cypraea moneta
More habitat info
Shell money
Astamangala Divya Prasna an article about divination in Kerala using coweries.
Photos of Monetaria moneta on Sealife Collection
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Monetaria moneta.