Conus balteatus

Conus balteatus
Apertural view of Conus balteatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Caenogastropoda clade Hypsogastropoda clade Neogastropoda
Superfamily:	Conoidea
Family:	Conidae
Subfamily:	Coninae
Genus:	Conus
Species:	C. balteatus
Binomial name
Conus balteatus G. B. Sowerby II, 1833 [1]
Synonyms[3]
Conus anosyensis Bozzetti, 2008 Conus cernicus H. Adams, 1869 Conus cibielii Kiener, 1845 Conus circumclausus Fenaux, 1942 Conus moussoni Crosse, 1865 Conus pigmentatus Adams A. and Reeve L.A. 1848 [2] Conus propinquus E. A. Smith, 1877 Conus tenuisulcatus G. B. Sowerby II, 1873 Rolaniconus balteatus cernicus (f) "Barclay, D.W. MS" Adams, H.G., 1869

Conus balteatus, common name the Mauritian cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.^[3]

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.

There is one subspecies : Conus balteatus pigmentatus A. Adams & Reeve, 1848

Description

The size of an adult shell varies between 13 mm and 33 mm. The shell is olive-brown or brown violaceous, with a more or less irregular white band below the middle, and another one below the tuberculated spire. The interior of the aperture is tinged with violet. ^[4]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Indian Ocean along the Mascarene Basin and in the Western Pacific Ocean.

References

1. ^ Sowerby (II), G. B. Jr., 1833. The Conchological Illustrations
2. ^ Adams, A., and Reeve, L. A., 1848. The Zoology of the Voyage of H.M.S. Samarang: Under the Command of Captain Sir Edward Belcher, C.B., F.R.A.S., F.G.S.. Mollusca, pt. 1
3. ^ ^{a b} Conus balteatus G. B. Sowerby II, 1833.  Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=215490 on 16 July 2011.
4. ^ George Washington Tryon, Manual of Conchology, vol. VI, p. 21; 1879

• 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
• Bozzetti L. (2008) Conus anosyensis (Gastropoda: Prosobranchia: Conidae) nuova specie dal Madagascar Sud-Orientale. Malacologia Mostra Mondiale 58: 15
• Tucker J.K. (2009). Recent cone species database. September 4th 2009 Edition

External links

• The Conus Biodiversity website
• Gastropods.com : Rolaniconus balteatus cernicus (f); accessed: 16 July 2011