Murex
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Murex snail
(image here)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Mollusca Class: Gastropoda Order: Neogastropoda Family: Muricidae Genus: Murex
Binomial names Murex approximatus Murex brandaris Murex erythrostomus Murex hoplites Murex microphyllus Murex palmarosae Murex pecten Murex radix Murex regius Murex trunculus

The Murex are a genus of tropical marine gastropods. The inner surfaces of their ornate shells are often brightly coloured. Mucus from the hypobranchial gland of two species, Murex brandaris and M. trunculus are used to make the dye Tyrian purple (or Royal purple) for use in royal garments.

The original article can be found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murex.
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