Conus artoptus

Conus artoptus, common name the tender cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.^[2]

Conus artoptus
Apertural and abapertural views of shell of Conus artoptus Sowerby, G.B. I, 1833
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Neogastropoda
Superfamily:	Conoidea
Family:	Conidae
Genus:	Conus
Species:	C. artoptus
Binomial name
Conus artoptus G. B. Sowerby I, 1833
Synonyms[2]
Conus spectabilis A. Adams, 1855 Conus (Virgiconus) artoptus G. B. Sowerby I, 1833· accepted, alternate representation Hermes artoptus (G. B. Sowerby I, 1833) Pseudohermes artoptus (G. B. Sowerby I, 1833)

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.

Description

The size of the shell varies between 35 mm and 79 mm. The shell is narrow, cylindrical, and encircled by minutely granose striae. Its color is whitish, broadly three-banded by oblong longitudinal clouds of orange-brown, the interstices brown-spotted.^[3]

Distribution

This marine species occurs off the Philippines, Indo-Malaysia, the Solomon Islands, in the Sulu Sea, off Vanuatu and Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia)