''Conus fumigatus'', common name the smoky cone, is a species of
sea snail
Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the ...
, a marine
gastropod
The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda ().
This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...
mollusk in the
family Conidae
Conidae, with the current common name of "cone snails", is a taxonomic family (previously subfamily) of predatory sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the superfamily Conoidea.
The 2014 classification of the superfamily Conoidea, groups onl ...
, the
cone snails
A cone is a three-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a flat base (frequently, though not necessarily, circular) to a point called the apex or vertex.
A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, or lines co ...
and their allies.
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.
Description
The size of the shell varies between 30 mm and 69 mm.
Distribution
This species occurs in the Red Sea off
Ethiopia; in the Libyan part of the
Mediterranean Sea (as an introduced species).
References
Bruguière J.G. (1789–1792). Encyclopdie méthodique ou par ordre de matières. Histoire naturelle des vers. Pancoucke, Paris. Vol. 1, part 1, p. 1–344 [June 1789]; Vol. 1, part 2, p. 345–758 [13 Feb. 1792; dates after N. EVENHUIS, 2003, Zootaxa, 166: 37; Zootaxa, 207]; Atlas pl. 1–189 [1791]; pl. 190–286 [1797] pl. 287–390 [1798] pl. 391–488Puillandre 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
External links
The ''Conus'' Biodiversity websiteCone Shells – Knights of the Sea*
fumigatus
Gastropods described in 1792
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