HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	41
TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2012
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

in support of declaring the serpent's head cowry shell as the Hawaii state sea shell.

     WHEREAS, the Monetaria caputserpentis, commonly known as the serpent's-head cowry, is a species of cowry, a sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk and is in the family Cypraeidae; and

     WHEREAS, this species occurs in the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, tropical Indo-West Pacific, Australia and the Philippines, and lives on corals, rock reefs and rocky shores from the intertidal zone down to depths of two hundred meters; and

     WHEREAS, the snake head or the serpent's head cowry is the most common type of cowry snail found in Hawaii; and

     WHEREAS, the shell of the serpent's head cowry is considered one of the most beautiful cowry shells; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-sixth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2012, that this body declares the serpent's head cowry shell as the Hawaii State sea shell; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, and the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Serpent's Head Cowry Shell; State Shell