Cumia intertexta

Cumia intertexta
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Neogastropoda
Family:	Colubrariidae
Genus:	Cumia
Species:	C. intertexta
Binomial name
Cumia intertexta (Helbling, 1779)
Synonyms
List Murex (Fusus) intertextus Helbling, 1779 Colubraria intertexta Helbling, 1779 Colubraria reticulata Blainville, 1829 Colubraria reticulata var. profundorum Ardovini, 2014 Colubraria reticulata var. spongiarum Kobelt, 1901 Cumia decussata Bivona & Bernardi, 1838 Cumia reticulata var. inflata Coen, 1922 Epidromus reticulatus Blainville, 1829 Epidromus reticulatus var. albina Monterosato, 1880 Epidromus reticulatus var. atra Monterosato, 1880 Epidromus reticulatus var. fasciata Monterosato, 1880 Epidromus reticulatus var. fulva Monterosato, 1880 Epidromus reticulatus var. minor Monterosato, 1880 Epidromus reticulatus var. nivea Monterosato, 1880 Epidromus reticulatus var. spongiarum Kobelt, 1901 Murex calfius Brusina, 1870 Triton mediterraneum G. B. Sowerby II, 1833 Triton reticulatum Blainville, 1829 Triton (Cumia) reticulatus var. biplex Coen, 1922 Triton turriculatum Deshayes, 1835 Tritonium bonanni Delle Chiaje, 1830

Cumia intertexta, commonly known as the Mediterranean vampire snail, is a species of marine gastropod in the family Colubrariidae. It is characterized by its hematophagous feeding habits, as it feeds by sucking blood from fish.

In 2026, the species was the winner of the International Mollusc of the Year, an initiative that annually selects five candidate species for a public vote; the top-voted species is awarded full genome sequencing by the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research.^[1] Other candidates in 2026 were Ephippodonta lunata, Lithoredo abatanica, Triplofusus giganteus, and Vaginula seychellensis. In 2025, the award went to the genus Muusoctopus, a deep-sea octopus.

Cumia intertexta reaches a maximum length of about 3 centimetres (1.2 in) and is found in the southern part of the Mediterranean basin (including Sardinia, Sicily, Apulia, Calabria, and the North African coasts). Its distribution largely overlaps with that of Sparisoma cretense (Mediterranean parrotfish), although it may also feed on other fish species such as gobies, scorpionfish, stargazers, and blennies.^[2]

This species is the only representative of the family Colubrariidae in the Mediterranean Sea, a family that includes about one hundred species, most of which are hematophagous. These gastropods typically inhabit shallow waters, hiding during the day under stones or in crevices in rocks and coral reefs, and becoming active at night.^[3]

Their preferred prey appears to be parrotfish, which tend to return to the same resting sites each night. Colubrariids can locate nearby fish in the dark and pierce their skin using small teeth located at the tip of a long, extensible proboscis, which can reach up to ten times the length of the shell. They then inject a mixture of bioactive substances produced in their salivary glands, enabling them to anesthetize the fish and keep its blood in a fluid state while feeding. After feeding, they retract the proboscis and return to hiding, leaving the fish stunned but alive.^{[citation needed]}

The venom of Cumia intertexta contains numerous bioactive proteins, including anticoagulants, anesthetics, tissue-dissolving proteins, and an enzyme capable of increasing the fish's blood pressure, thereby accelerating feeding. Some of these proteins may have potential applications in the treatment of human diseases.^[4]

• 
  Cumia intertexta with its proboscis extended
• 
  Cumia intertexta feeding on a scorpionfish
• 
  Cumia intertexta feeding on a goby

• Cumia intertexta (Helbling, 1779) at MolluscaBase
• International Mollusc of the Year
• Cumia intertexta – Mediterranean vampire snail