Conus inscriptus

Conus inscriptus
	Apertural view of Conus inscriptus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Caenogastropoda
Order:	Neogastropoda
Superfamily:	Conoidea
Family:	Conidae
Genus:	Conus
Species:	C. inscriptus
Binomial name
	Conus inscriptus; Reeve, 1843
Synonyms
	Asprella inscripta (Reeve, 1843); Asprella inscripta adenensis E. A. Smith, 1891; Conus adenensis E. A. Smith, 1891; Conus cavailloni Fenaux, 1942; Conus cuneiformis E. A. Smith, 1877; Conus evansi Bondarev, 2001; Conus inscriptus f. meridionalis G. Raybaudi Massilia, 1989 (inavailable name: established as a form after 1960); Conus inscriptus indicus Röckel, 1979 (invalid: junior homonym of Conus magus var. indicus Weinkauff, 1874); Conus keatiformis Shikama, 1977; Conus keatii G. B. Sowerby II, 1858; Conus maculospira Pilsbry & Johnson, 1921; Conus maculospira Pilsbry, 1922; Conus maculospira bangladeshianus da Motta, 1985; † Conus planiliratus G. B. Sowerby I, 1850; Conus planiliratus G. B. Sowerby III, 1870(invalid: junior homonym of Conus planiliratus G.B. Sowerby I, 1850 (fossil);Conus maculospira is a replacement name); Conus planiliratus var. batheon Sutrany, 1904; Conus sartii Korn, Niederhöfer & Blöcher, 2001; Conus tegulatus G. B. Sowerby II, 1870; Conus (Phasmoconus) inscriptus Reeve, 1843 . accepted, alternative representation; Graphiconus cavailloni (Fenaux, 1942); Graphiconus inscriptus (Reeve, 1843);

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

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 32 mm and 65 mm. The shell is rather solid, smooth, grooved towards the base. Its color is ash-white, with dark chestnut hieroglyphic characters, interrupted by revolving series of spots in the middle and at the base.^[3]

Distribution

This species occurs in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean off Madagascar and KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa; also found off Western Thailand and in the Aegean Sea (as an introduced alien)

References

^ Reeve, L. A., 1843. Monograph of the genus Conus. Conchologia Iconica, i: figures and descriptions of the shells of molluscs; with remarks on their affinities, synonymy, and geographical distribution, 1. Conus.
^ ^a ^b Conus inscriptus Reeve, 1843. Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 26 July 2011.
^ George Washington Tryon, Manual of Conchology vol. VI, p.65; 1879

Smith, E. A. 1877. Description of a new species of Conus. Quarterly Journal of Conchology 1:202–204, 1 fig.
Filmer R.M. (2001). A Catalogue of Nomenclature and Taxonomy in the Living Conidae 1758 – 1998. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden. 388pp.
Tucker J.K. (2009). Recent cone species database. September 4, 2009 Edition
Tucker J.K. & Tenorio M.J. (2009) Systematic classification of Recent and fossil conoidean gastropods. Hackenheim: Conchbooks. 296 pp
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