(Synonyms: Littorina ambigua "Nuttall" Philippi, 1848; L. serialis Eydoux and Souleyet, 1852.) Length, 9 mm; diameter, 5 mm. Shell: conic-turbinate; with microscopic spiral striae; purple-gray freckled with red-brown. Spire: five to nine moderately convex whorls; suture moderately impressed. Sculpture: microscopic spiral striae. Aperture: ovate; outer lip thin to moderately thick. Color: purple-gray, freckled with dark brown or black; aperture dark brown.
These littorines are abundant with Nodilittorina picta in the supratidal region along all rocky shores from Midway to Hawaii. They are oviparous, shedding their eggs into the water where the young develop in the plankton. The veligers hatch from the egg capsules about four days after spawning and have a long planktonic life (Struhsaker, 1966). L. pintado spawns throughout the year, but only during high tides (Struhsaker, 1966). One female may produce 82,000 eggs per year. Fossils of L. pintado occur in Pleistocene deposits on Oahu (Ostergaard, 1928). L. pintado was described from the Hawaiian Islands, but is widely distributed throughout the Indo-West Pacific from East Africa to Clipperton Island (L. pintado schmitti) (Rosewater, 1970).