Ram's Horn

Description:

Spirula spirula is a species of deep water squid-like cephalopod mollusk. Because of the shape of its internal shell, it is commonly known as the ram's horn squid. Live specimens of this cephalopod are very rarely seen, because it is a deep-ocean dweller. The small internal shell of the species is however quite a familiar object to many beachcombers. The shell of Spirula is extremely light in weight, very buoyant and surprisingly strong; it very commonly floats ashore onto tropical beaches (and sometimes even temperate beaches) all over the world. This seashell is known to shell collectors as the ram's horn shell or simply as Spirula.

Habitat:

By day Spirula lives in the deep oceans, reaching depths of 1,000 m. At night, they rise to a depth of 100 to 300 m. Their preferred temperature is around 10°C, and they tend to live around oceanic islands, near the continental shelf. Most sources cite this species as tropical, and they are observed to be plentiful in the seas around the Canary Islands. However, significant quantities of shells from dead Spirula are washed ashore even in temperate regions, such as the western coasts of South Africa and New Zealand. Because of the great buoyancy of the shells, these may possibly have been carried long distances by ocean currents.