Conus leopardus

Conus leopardus, common name the leopard cone, is a species of predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails, cone shells, or cones.^[3]

Conus leopardus
A shell of Conus leopardus, anterior end towards the bottom of the image
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. leopardus
Binomial name
Conus leopardus (Röding, 1798)[2]
Synonyms[3]
Conus (Lithoconus) leopardus (Röding, 1798) · accepted, alternate representation Conus millepunctatus Lamarck, 1822 Conus millepunctatus var. aldrovandi Dautzenberg, 1937 Conus pardus Link, 1807 Cucullus leopardus Röding, 1798 (original combination) Lithoconus leopardus (Röding, 1798)

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 an adult shell varies between 50 mm and 222 mm.

shell of Conus leopardus

Distribution

This marine species occurs in the Indian Ocean off Aldabra, Chagos, Madagascar, the Mascarene basin, Mauritius, and Tanzania; in the entire Indo-Pacific Region; off Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia).

See also

• Conus leopardus Dillwyn, 1817 is a synonym of Conus vexillum Gmelin, 1791