These snails play a role in the food chain of the sea as predators.
This particular cone is a predator that feeds on anything from marine worms to sizable fish. It hunts by extending its proboscis," a muscular extension and retraction of the gut." When it touches prey, the proboscis launches a harpoon-like tooth that pierces the prey and injects deadly venom. The proboscis is then retracted, hauling the prey in. The venom is very deadly and some species of cones have reportedly caused human fatalities.
Florida and the Gulf of Mexico
Biogeographic Regions: neotropical (Native ); atlantic ocean (Native )
This species of cone is at home on coral reefs or shallow ocean bottom.
Aquatic Biomes: reef ; coastal
These cones reach 2-3 inches in length. They surface of the shell is smooth. Background color white, with numerous small orangish squares.
Other Physical Features: ectothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Cones are sexual reproducing animals. When mating, the female lays a group of eggs that are all attached in a thick kind of mucus. The male is positioned near her body and fertilizes the eggs as soon as they are exit her body. The fertilized eggs remain bonded together in the thick mucus layer until they hatch. Young are not tended by their parents.
