Conus zeylanicus

Conus zeylanicus
Apertural and abapertural views of shell of Conus zeylanicus Gmelin, J.F., 1791
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Clade:	Caenogastropoda
Clade:	Hypsogastropoda
Clade:	Neogastropoda
Superfamily:	Conoidea
Family:	Conidae
Genus:	Conus
Species:	C. zeylanicus
Binomial name
Conus zeylanicus Petuch, 1987
Synonyms[1]
Conus (Puncticulis) zeylanicus Gmelin, 1791 · accepted, alternate representation Conus ceylonicus Reeve, 1849 Conus ceylonicus G. B. Sowerby II, 1857 Conus obesus Hwass in Bruguière, 1792 Conus zeylandicus [sic] (misspelling) Cucullus meningeus Röding, 1798 Cucullus theobroma Röding, 1798 Puncticulis zeylanicus (Gmelin, 1791)

Conus zeylanicus, common name the obese cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.^[1]

These snails are predatory and venomous. They are capable of "stinging" humans, therefore live ones should be handled carefully or not at all.

Description

The size of the shell varies between 27 mm and 78 mm. The shell is obsolete!y coronated with tubercles. The stout body whorl is somewhat convex. The ground color of the shell is white or very pale yellow or bluish, faintly clouded, with numerous small chestnut or chocolate spots and short lines, often forming dark clouds, so placed as to make interrupted, revolving bands.^[2]

Distribution

This marine species occurs in the Indian Ocean (Tanzania, Mascarene Islands) and eastwards as far as Indonesia.

References

1. Conus zeylanicus Gmelin, 1791.  Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 27 March 2010.
2. G.W. Tryon (1884) Manual of Conchology, structural and systematic, with illustrations of the species, vol. VI; Philadelphia, Academy of Natural Sciences

• Drivas, J.; Jay, M. (1987). Coquillages de La Réunion et de l'Île Maurice. Collection Les Beautés de la Nature. Delachaux et Niestlé: Neuchâtel. ISBN 2-603-00654-1. 159 pp
• Puillandre, N.; Duda, T.F.; Meyer, C.; Olivera, B.M.; Bouchet, P. (2015). "One, four or 100 genera? A new classification of the cone snails". Journal of Molluscan Studies 81: 1–23. doi:10.1093/mollus/eyu055.

External links

• The Conus Biodiversity website
• Cone Shells - Knights of the Sea

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  Conus zeylanicus Gmelin, J.F., 1791