Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

Conus ermineus

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Kingdom
  
Animalia

Class
  
Gastropoda

Clade
  
Hypsogastropoda

Scientific name
  
Conus ermineus

Phylum
  
Mollusca

Clade
  
Caenogastropoda

Clade
  
Neogastropoda

Rank
  
Species

Conus ermineus httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

Similar
  
Chelyconus, Conasprella jaspidea, Conus purpurascens, Conus daucus, Conus genuanus

Conus ermineus, 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.

Contents

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.

Distribution

This species occurs in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico; in the Atlantic Ocean off West Africa and the Cape Verdes; in the Indian Ocean off Tanzania.

Description

The maximum recorded shell length is 103 mm.

Conantokin-E is a toxin derived from the venom of Conus ermineus.

It is a fishing eating species. Utilizes specialized hollow harpoon like radula tooth to harpoon small fish and paralyze them with venom to facilitate swallowing.

Habitat

Minimum recorded depth is 0 m. Maximum recorded depth is 101 m.

References

Conus ermineus Wikipedia