Conus achatinus

Pionoconus achatinus
Apertural view of Pionoconus achatinus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Caenogastropoda clade Hypsogastropoda clade Neogastropoda
Superfamily:	Conoidea
Family:	Conidae
Subfamily:	Coninae
Genus:	Pionoconus
Species:	P. achatinus
Binomial name
Pionoconus achatinus Gmelin, 1791 [1]
Synonyms[2]
Conus achatinus var. infumata Dautzenberg, 1937 Conus achatinus violacea (f) Barros & C.M.I. Cunha, 1933 Conus barbara Brazier, 1898 Conus contusus Reeve, 1848 Conus figulinus violascens Barros e Cunha, 1933 Conus frostiana Brazier, 1898 Conus monachus Linnaeus, 1758 Conus nebulosus Gmelin, 1791 Conus ranunculus Hwass in Bruguière, 1792 Conus vinctus A. Adams, 1855 Cucullus cinerarius Röding, 1798 Cucullus maculosus Röding, 1798 Cucullus ventricosus Röding, 1798 Pionoconus achatinus (Gmelin, 1791)

Pionoconus achatinus, common name the turtle cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.^[2]

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 an adult shell varies between 35 mm and 100 mm. The shell is bulbous, with a somewhat elevated, lightly striated spire and rounded shoulders. The body whorl is rounded with convex sides, sometimes with granular striae below. The shell is pale blue, marbled with pinkish or purplish white and olivaceous-brown, under a light brown, thin epidermis, everywhere encircled by close-set narrow brown lines, which are usually broken up into brown and white articulations. ^[3]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean along the Mascarene Basin; in the Indo-West Pacific. It is variable throughout its range.

References

1. ^ Gmelin, J. F., 1791. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, 13th ed. Vol. 1,
2. ^ ^{a b} Conus achatinus Gmelin, 1791.  Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=215431 on 31 July 2011.
3. ^ George Washington Tryon, Manual of Conchology vol. VI, p. 64; 1879

• Vine, P. (1986). Red Sea Invertebrates. Immel Publishing, London. 224 pp
• Drivas, J. & M. Jay (1988). Coquillages de La Réunion et de l'île Maurice
• Filmer R.M. (2001). A Catalogue of Nomenclature and Taxonomy in the Living Conidae 1758 - 1998. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden. 388pp.
• Tucker J.K. (2009). Recent cone species database. September 4th 2009 Edition
• Tucker J.K. & Tenorio M.J. (2009) Systematic classification of Recent and fossil conoidean gastropods. Hackenheim: Conchbooks. 296 pp.

External links

• The Conus Biodiversity website
• Gastropods.com: Pionoconus achatinus; accessed: 31 July 2011