![]() ![]() The radula tooth is hollow and barbed, and is attached to the tip of the radula in the radular sac, inside the snail's throat. Each specialized cone snail tooth is stored in the radula sac, except for the tooth that is in current use. ![]() Radula teeth are modified teeth, primarily made of chitin and formed inside the mouth of the snail, in a structure known as the toxoglossan radula. Molecular phylogeny research has shown that preying on fish has evolved at least twice independently in cone snails.Īn individual ( Conus pennaceus) attacking one of a cluster of three snails of the species Cymatium nicobaricum, in HawaiiĬone snails use a harpoon-like structure called a radula tooth for predation. The cone snails immobilize their prey using a modified, dartlike, barbed radular tooth, made of chitin, along with a venom gland containing neurotoxins. It is through this sensory modality that cone snails are able to sense their prey. The osphradium in cone snails is more specialized than in other groups of gastropods. Cone snails are slow-moving, and use a venomous harpoon to disable faster-moving prey. Their prey consists of marine worms, small fish, molluscs, and other cone snails. In other species, the topmost shell layer is a thin periostracum, a transparent yellowish or brownish membrane.Ĭone snails are carnivorous. Some species color patterns may be partially or completely hidden under an opaque layer of periostracum. The shells of cone snails are often brightly colored with a variety of patterns. The larger species of cone snails can grow up to 23 cm (9.1 in) in length. The outer lip is simple, thin, and sharp, without a callus, and has a notched tip at the upper part. The aperture is elongated and narrow with the sharp operculum being very small. The protruding parts of the top of the whorls, that form the spire, are in the shape of another more flattened cone. The shell is whorled in the form of an inverted cone, with the anterior end being narrower. The shells of cone snails vary in size and are conical in shape. As of 2009, more than 3,200 different species names have been assigned, with an average of 16 new species names introduced each year. This variety in color and pattern has led to the creation of a large number of known synonyms and probable synonyms, making it difficult to give an exact taxonomic assignment for many snails in this genus. They live on a variety of substrates, from the intertidal zone and deeper areas, to sand, rocks or coral reefs.Ĭone snails have a large variety of shell colors and patterns, with local varieties and color forms of the same species often occurring. Ĭone snails are found in all tropical and subtropical seas. While the majority of cone snails are found in warm tropical waters, some species have adapted to temperate/semi-tropical environments and are endemic to areas such as the Cape coast of South Africa, the Mediterranean, or the cool subtropical waters of southern California ( Californiconus californicus). Cone snails reach their greatest diversity in the Western Indo-Pacific region. Cone snails are typically found in warm tropical seas and oceans worldwide. There are over 900 different species of cone snails. Cone snail venom also shows promise for medical use. The sting of several larger species of cone snails can be serious, and even fatal to humans. The tooth, which is likened to a dart or a harpoon, is barbed and can be extended some distance out from the head of the snail at the end of the proboscis.Ĭone snail venoms are mainly peptide-based, and contain many different toxins that vary in their effects. Cone snails use a modified radula tooth and a venom gland to attack and paralyze their prey before engulfing it. Cone snails are almost exclusively tropical in distribution.Īll cone snails are venomous and capable of stinging. Many species have colorful patterning on the shell surface. Cone snail species have shells that are roughly conical in shape. įossils of cone snails have been found from the Eocene to the Holocene epochs. A group of shells belonging to various species of cone snailsĬone snails, or cones, are highly venomous sea snails of the family Conidae. ![]()
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