CreatureData

Cowry

Monetaria moneta (Linnaeus, 1758)

Status not recordedsnails and slugs

The cowry (Monetaria moneta) is a species in the family Cypraeidae, order Littorinimorpha.

No freely licensed photo yet

Quick facts about the cowry

Weight
Not recorded
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Young per litter or clutch
Not recorded
Conservation status
Not recorded
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the cowry live?

Not recorded

Is the cowry endangered?

No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.

How is the cowry classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumMollusca
  3. classGastropoda
  4. orderLittorinimorpha
  5. familyCypraeidae
  6. genusMonetaria
  7. SpeciesMonetaria moneta (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms Cypraea annulifera, Cypraea barthelemyi, Cypraea circumvallata, Cypraea ethnographica, Cypraea gibbosa, Cypraea icterina, Cypraea mercatorium, Cypraea moneta, Cypraea moneta var. candida, Cypraea monetacongo, Cypraea numisma, Cypraea subalata, Cypraea tuberculosa, Erosaria moneta, Monetaria britannica, Monetaria chionella, Monetaria endua, Monetaria erua, Monetaria ethnographica, Monetaria ethnographica circumvallata, Monetaria etolu, Monetaria harrisi, Monetaria icterina, Monetaria icterina rhomboids, Monetaria isomeres, Monetaria mercatorium, Monetaria moneta, Monetaria moneta endua, Monetaria moneta erua, Monetaria moneta etolu, Monetaria moneta icterina, Monetaria moneta moneta, Monetaria moneta monetserpentis, Monetaria moneta subalata, Monetaria moneta tuberculosa, Monetaria moneta var. annulifera, Monetaria monetoides, Monetaria monetoides harrisi, Monetaria pleuronectes, Monetaria plumaria, Monetaria pseudomoneta, Monetaria rhomboides, Monetaria vestimenti

Other names and names in other languages (21)
  • Money cowrieEnglish
  • Money cowryEnglish
  • zavinutec penízkovýCzech
  • GeldkauriGerman
  • Porcelaine-monnaieFrench
  • Leho 'ualaHawaiian
  • פי-כושי אסימוןHebrew
  • Ciprea monetaItalian
  • キイロダカラJapanese
  • 돈개오지Korean
  • GeldkaurieDutch
  • porcelanka monetkaPolish
  • Búzio-moedaPortuguese
  • Каури-монетаRussian
  • porcelánovec peňažnýSlovak
  • หอยเบี้ยจักจั่นThai
  • 黃寶螺Chinese
  • GeldschneckeGerman
  • KaurischneckeGerman
  • アフリカキイロダカラJapanese
  • Монетария-монетаRussian

Catalogue of Life

Relatives of the cowry

Other species in the same genus Monetaria.

Gold Ringer

Monetaria annulus

CypraeidaeNo free photo yet

CompareCowry vs Gold RingerCowry vs Dragon's head cowryCowry vs Walled cowrieCowry vs Snake's head cowry

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

What kind of animal is the cowry?

The cowry (Monetaria moneta) belongs to the family Cypraeidae in the order Littorinimorpha.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-14. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Cowry (Monetaria moneta). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/cowry

MLA

“Cowry (Monetaria moneta).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/cowry.

BibTeX
@misc{cowry_2026,
  title = {Cowry (Monetaria moneta)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/cowry},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-14}
}