Conus pennaceus

Case of Conus pennaceus

The conical spring, the spring cone snail ( Conus pennaceus ) is a snail from the family of cone snails ( genus Conus ), which is found throughout the Indo-Pacific. It feeds mainly on mollusks.

Features

After the first description of Conus pennaceus by Ignaz von Born, the cone- shaped shell [ ... ] is " painted with dotted cross lines and scattered whitish spring-shaped spots. The shell is conical, dense and smooth, the Schnirkel [ thread ] obtuse, the lower thread [ whorls ] flat and the upper sublime pyramid in the middle, and pointed, vermilion -colored with red-brown, composed of points transverse lines. The scattered white or blue and white spots, are spring -like. "

The case reached in adult snails from 3.5 to 8.8 cm in length. The basic color is white, the periostracum grayish to brownish yellow, thin, translucent and smooth.

The top of the foot is as white as the white sensor speckled brown. The sole is speckled light and dark brown. The white Sipho is also speckled brown and has a black ring and an orange-red tip.

Dissemination

The spring cone occurs in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean on, but not on the coast of India, the Pacific Ocean to Hawaii.

Habitat

Spring cone live below the intertidal zone of coral reefs and on the coast of the mainland to 50 m depth on rocks and sand.

Life cycle

Like all cone snails Conus pennaceus is dioecious, the male and the female copulated with his penis. The female attaches the egg packets to a solid surface. A Eipaket has about 60 egg capsules with a size of 14 mm to 17 mm by 10 mm to 11 mm in front of the Maldives and about 35 egg capsules with a size of 8.5 mm to 13 mm by 7 mm to 10 mm to Hawaii. From the egg capsules hatch already large, well developed veliger larvae, which in turn undergo a metamorphosis into a snail. An egg capsule contains ago Maldives 480-660 eggs with a diameter of 375-407 microns. From this it is deduced that the period of pelagic veliger takes about seven days. Before Hawaii an egg capsule contains 25-250 eggs with a diameter of 470-520 microns. The hatching Veliconcha metamorphosed within a day to the final screw.

Food

Conus pennaceus eats worm - both prosobranch and opisthobranch - though obviously no cone snails. The prey is stung with the poisonous harpoon tooth in the foot. On the coast of Mozambique has been observed that spring cone Scavenging.

Enemies

Among the enemies of spring cone of the cone belongs Weber ( Conus textile ).