Conus violaceus

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

Conus violaceus
Apertural and abapertural views of shell of Conus violaceus Gmelin, J.F., 1791
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Order: Neogastropoda
Superfamily: Conoidea
Family: Conidae
Genus: Conus
Species:
C. violaceus
Binomial name
Conus violaceus
Gmelin, 1791
Synonyms[1]
  • Conus (Virgiconus) violaceus Gmelin, 1791 · accepted, alternate representation
  • Conus tendineus Hwass in Bruguière, 1792
  • Hermes violaceus (Gmelin, 1791)
  • Pseudohermes violaceus (Gmelin, 1791)

Like all species within the genus Conus, these snails are predatory and venomous. They are capable of "stinging" humans, therefore live ones should be handled carefully or not at all.

The homonym Conus violaceus Link, H.F. 1807 is a synonym of Conus glans Bruguière, M. 1792.

Description

The size of the medium-sized to large shell varies between 39 mm and 93 mm. The shell is moderately solid and glossy. The light-brown spire has a medium height with a rounded and sharp apex. Its sutures are narrowly channeled. The shoulder is indistinct. The body whorl has a narrow conoid-cylindrical shape. The white aperture is narrow, widening anteriorly. The thick outer lip is straight, sloping somewhat below the shoulder. The ground color of the shell is white, crossed with light brown axial streaks and three chestnut spiral bands. The base of the shell is tinged with violet.[2][3]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Indian Ocean off East Africa, Mauritius, Chagos and the Mascarene Islands. It is very rare off the Tamil Nadu Coast of India.

References
  1. Conus violaceus Gmelin, 1791. Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 27 March 2010.
  2. J. Benjamin Franklin,K. A. Subramanian, S. Antony Fernando & K. S. Krishnan, Diversity and Distribution of Conidae from the Tamil Nadu Coast of India (Mollusca: Caenogastropoda (Conidae); Zootaxa 2250: 1–63 (2009)
  3. Conus Biodiversity Website: Conus violaceus
  • 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. PMC 4541476. PMID 26300576.
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