Black Nerite

Description:

Nerita atramentosa, commonly known as Black Nerite, is a medium-sized sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Neritidae. This species is endemic to the southern Pacific, including the south-eastern coast of Australia. This little group caught my eye simply because they were clustered together, the water was clear, and the low sun made them stand out against the colour of the rock face. The shell is of moderate size, very solid, globose-oval, and smooth except for weak shallowly incised spiral lines. The external shell colour is black, but the aperture is white, except for a narrow black border. Once shells get over about 26mm they start to wear down and typically have knotched sides and a white wear on the right hand side of the shell. Shell height is up to 30 mm, and width 32 mm.

Habitat:

This species is commonly found on intertidal rocks, particularly in the mid to upper intertidal zone with low to medium wave action. It prefers to attach to sloped or vertical rock surfaces, or hang from the underside of rocks. Spotted in the rock pools at North Avoca Beach, on the NSW Central Coast.

Notes:

There has been some confusion over the taxonomy of the genus Nerita in the Pacific region, however, Nerita atramentosa and Nerita melanotragus are now recognised as separate species (the two have often been considered to be the same species) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerita_mel...