Golden Cowrie Shell Largest of Cowrie family

Cowrie shells are also worn as jewelry or otherwise used as ornaments or charms. They are viewed as symbols of womanhood, fertility, birth and wealth.

 The golden cowrie is a marine snail named for its brilliant orange shell. It is among the largest of the world's 250 known cowrie species, reaching four inches in length. Rare and reclusive, these mollusks spend most of their lives hiding under rocks in the cracks and crevices of reefs in the South Pacific.

Golden cowrie shells have been used as currency and religious symbols throughout the South Pacific. On the island of Fiji, they were worn on a necklace by a chieftain as a symbol of status and rank.

In the past, on the Fiji Islands, this shell, known as "bulikula", was drilled at the ends and worn on a string around the neck by chieftains as a symbol of rank or privilege.[3] As the shells are rare, they are prized by collectors.

Golden cowrie shells are among the hardest shells to find and are prized by collectors. Unfortunately, habitat loss and over-harvesting are hurting the wild population numbers.

Once used as status symbols among Fiji rulers, the golden cowrie is prized by shell collectors.

COMMON NAME: Golden Cowrie

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Lyncina aurantium

TYPE: Invertebrates

DIET: Omnivore

SIZE: 89mm