''Conus compressus'' is a species of

sea snail Sea snails are slow-moving marine (ocean), marine gastropod Mollusca, molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the Taxonomic classification, taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguishe ...

, a marine

gastropod Gastropods (), commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, freshwater, and fro ...

mollusk Mollusca is a phylum of protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The ...

in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.Bouchet, P. (2011). ''Conus compressus'' G. B. Sowerby II, 1866. Accessed through:

World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=429368 on 2012-01-21Filmer R.M. (2001). A Catalogue of Nomenclature and Taxonomy in the Living Conidae 1758 - 1998. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden. 388pp. The database WoRMS lists this species only tentatively, as it may be a synonym for a northern form of ''

Conus anemone ''Conus anemone'', common name the anemone cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies. Like all species within the genus ''Conus'', these snails are predatory and venomo ...

''. As there are conservation implications, a precautionary approach should be taken, and ''C. compressus'' is here tentatively listed as a valid species. The real ''C. compressus'' has a distribution restricted from Geraldton to Shark Bay, but in recent years the name has been mistakenly applied to a tall-spired form of anemone from South Australia. Like all cone snail species, these snails are

predatory Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

and

venomous Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...

. They are capable of

stinging Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-ear ...

humans, therefore live ones should be handled carefully or not at all. Conus compressus 3

Description

The size of the shell varies between 25 mm and 67 mm.

Distribution

This marine species occurs off Southern Australia.

References

* Lamarck, J.B.P.A. de M. 1810. ''Suite des espèces du genre Cône''. Annales du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle. Paris 15: 263-286, 422-442 * Sowerby, G.B. 1866. ''Monograph of the genus Conus. pp. 328-329 in Thesaurus Conchyliorum, or monographs of genera of shells.'' London : Sowerby, G.B. Vol. 3. * Tomlin, J.R. le B. 1937. ''Catalogue of Recent and Fossil Cones.'' Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 22: 205-333
Petit, R. E. (2009). ''George Brettingham Sowerby, I, II & III: their conchological publications and molluscan taxa''. Zootaxa. 2189: 1–218

Puillandre 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

Biodiversity Heritage Library (1 publication)

USNM Invertebrate Zoology Mollusca Collection

World Register of Marine Species

Cone Shells - Knights of the Sea
* Gastropods of Australia compressus Gastropods described in 1866 {{Conus-stub