Type locality: The lagoon on the southern side of eastern South Bellona Reef, 21°50'7"S / 159°3r6ME. Range: Apparently restricted to Bellona Reef in the Coral Sea. Habitat: On sandy bottom in rather shallow water. Most specimens were found between 3 and 15 m.

Description: Shell of medium size, light but solid, fusiform, measuring 60-75 mm. Protoconch small, bulbous of 1.5 smooth whorls. Spire is moderately high. Teleoconch of 7.5 convex whorls with a deep suture. Axial sculpture of 21-25 rounded ribs on the penultimate whorl, 20-24 on the body whorl. Spiral sculpture of numerous fine striae, more conspicious in the interspaces of the ribs, and of 6-9 crowded cords on the anterior part of the shell. Aperture is narrow. Outer lip thickened forming externally a striated varix. Columella arched bearing three strong plaits followed adapically by 8-10 lirae of unequal length, the two posterior ones thicker. Background colour light beige, marked by three well-defined coloured spiral bands. Unusual within the genus Lyria, two colour morphs live together in the same area: one has bright orange to orange-reddish bands, the other light brown to purple-brown without any different conchological characters. Animal: Animal is beautiful, foot and head yellow entirely covered by a reddish panther-like pattern.

Comparison: This outstanding species is unmistakable. Concerning the shape and sculpture, the closest related species is L. (M.) mitraeformis from the southern coast of Australia, however colour, pattern and columellar plaits are different and exclude any confusion.
Remarks: Discovered only in 1979 when four live specimens of this magnificent Lyria were fished by an expedition from New Zealand at a depth of 15 m on the sand of a lagoon of Bellona Reef. A subsequent mission of the ORSTOM collected but a single dead specimen. Recently in 1994 and in 2000, two tenacious seafarers, cruising in this remote and dangerous area, brought back well-preserved specimens, the first coming to private collections.