Conus monachus

Conus monachus, common name the monastic cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails, cone shells or cones.[2]

Conus monachus
Apertural view of a shell of Conus monachus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Order: Neogastropoda
Superfamily: Conoidea
Family: Conidae
Genus: Conus
Species:
C. monachus
Binomial name
Conus monachus
Synonyms[2]
  • Conus (Pionoconus) monachus Linnaeus, 1758 · accepted, alternate representation
  • Conus contusus Reeve, 1848
  • Conus frostianus Brazier, 1898
  • Conus nebulosus Gmelin, 1791
  • Conus vinctus A. Adams, 1855
  • Cucullus cinerarius Röding, 1798
  • Cucullus guttatus Röding, 1798
  • Cucullus maculosus Röding, 1798
  • Pionoconus monachus (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Pionoconus vinctus (A. Adams, 1855)

These snails are predatory and venomous. They are capable of "stinging" humans.

Description

The size of the shell varies between 18 mm (0.71 in) and 74 mm (2.9 in). The shell is a little inflated and distantly grooved below. The spire is striate and somewhat convex. The shell is white, longitudinally marbled and flecked with dull blue or purple.[3] It captures it's prey by using the "taser-and-tether" (harpoon) strategy. This means it stuns its prey by using venom and extends a proboscis from its rostrum and "hooks" the fish, the same way a harpoon would.[4]

Distribution and habitat

This marine species occurs in the Indo-Pacific. It is found in the neritic zone and resides in muddy sand and under rocks.[5]

References
  1. Duda T (2013). "Supreme Cone Conus monachus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T192399A2088081. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T192399A2088081.en. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  2. Bouchet P (2015). "Conus monachus Linnaeus, 1758". MolluscaBase. Retrieved 2015-11-04 – via World Register of Marine Species.
  3. Tryon GW (1884). Manual of Conchology, structural and systematic, with illustrations of the species. Vol. VI. Philadelphia: Academy of Natural Sciences.
  4. Olivera BM, Seger J, Horvath MP, Fedosov AE (September 2015). "Prey-Capture Strategies of Fish-Hunting Cone Snails: Behavior, Neurobiology and Evolution". Brain, Behavior and Evolution. 86 (1): 58–74. doi:10.1159/000438449. PMC 4621268. PMID 26397110.
  5. Palomares ML, Pauly D, eds. (2022). "Conus monachus" in SeaLifeBase. April 2022 version.

Further reading
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