Large harp

Harpa major

Molluscs
IUCN: Not evaluated

Usual depth17–85 m
Water temperature20–30 °C
Best monthsJanuary, April, and July
How commonRare

Photo credit: (c) JH, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

About this species

Harpa major, commonly known by the English vernacular names large harp, or alternatively as the major harp, is a notable species of large predatory sea snail. These fascinating marine gastropod mollusks belong to the family Harpidae, a group collectively known as the harp snails and their close allies.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Harpa major”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 14 records
February: 6 records
March: 10 records
April: 13 records
May: 2 records
June: 8 records
July: 14 records
August: 13 records
September: 12 records
October: 7 records
November: 7 records
December: 11 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 17–85 m · Deepest record: 105.5 m

0–10 m: 1 records
10–20 m: 1 records
20–30 m: 3 records
30–40 m: 0 records
40–50 m: 0 records
50–60 m: 1 records
60–70 m: 4 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 1 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 1 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 20–30 °C

18–20 °C: 1 records
20–22 °C: 0 records
22–24 °C: 1 records
24–26 °C: 18 records
26–28 °C: 23 records
28–30 °C: 56 records

Photos

(c) Dan Schofield, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Dan Schofield, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
(c) Jo Roberts, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Ben Costamagna, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) JH, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

Names and classification

English: Large harp, Major harp, Swollen harp, large harp, major harp, swollen harp

Names in 3 more languages

German: Davidsharfe, Große Harfe, Große Harfenschnecke
Japanese: ショクコウラ
Simplified Chinese: 大楊桃螺

Other scientific names: Harpa conoidalis, Harpa kawamurai, Harpa ligata, Harpa ventricosa

Similar species

Lesser harp
Harpa amouretta
Articulate harp
Harpa articularis
Ventral Harp
Harpa cabriti
Madras harp
Harpa davidis
Common harp
Harpa harpa
Harpa kajiyamai

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
257 open-data records from 1955 to 2010.
Species data updated October 30, 2026.

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