Conus tulipa

Case of Conus Tulipa

The tulips cone snail ( Conus Tulipa ) is a snail from the family of cone snails ( genus Conus ), who lives in the Indo-Pacific.

Features

The body handling the snail shell of Conus Tulipa is ovoid to cylindrical, convex, concave towards the head end ( tapered in the shape of a spindle). For adult snails the house reaches a length from 5.0 to 9.5 cm. The basic color of the case is bluish gray, blue or pink flooded. The surface of the body intercourse has reddish brown spots, which are often linked to an interrupted spiral band. It is covered by spirally extending rows brown and black spots and lines. The Windungsumgänge are red with brown stitching. The thread forms a flat truncated, which may be slightly concave. The periostracum is yellowish brown, fairly thin and can be translucent.

The white top of the foot is densely speckled with brown radial streaks and spots, especially close to the edge. The beige head ( rostrum ) is sparsely spotted light brown. The mouth opening is surrounded by a dense ring of appendages. The sensors are white and brown on top, mottled brown at the base. The siphon is gray with brown transverse rows of strips that converge at the base, dark gray at the top. The sole is white to beige and sparsely spotted with brown, fitted with dark longitudinal stripes.

The rostrum and the mouth are wide stretchy width and length of the body length of the screw out.

Dissemination

The tulips cone snail occurs up to the Marshall Islands and French Polynesia in the Pacific and Indian Ocean from the coast of East Africa between Mozambique and Somalia.

Habitat

Tulips cone snails live in the intertidal zone to 10 m depth, on the coast or in coral reefs on sand, often under rocks, on crushed coral or rock surfaces under Tang in the surf.

Food

Tulips cone snails eat fish in particular, besides also molluscs. Conus Tulipa is a prime example of " power - fighter " under the cone snails: The screw her inside out greatly expanded mouth often without previous stab through one or several fish that rest, and then closes the mouth opening provided with a number of extensions, so that the prey is caught.

Relevance to humans

Conus Tulipa is due to its patterned housing a popular collector's item, so that man can be considered as a major enemy.

Like other cone snails sets of tulips cone his harpoon toxic not only to catch prey, but also for defense. Its fangs can penetrate gloves and wet suits. There is no antidote, so treatment aims to keep those affected by the removal of toxins alive.

Some toxins ( conotoxins ) from cone snails have a strong analgesic effect and are therefore evaluated for medical applicability. A group of conopeptides (rho -TIA) was found in 2001 in Conus Tulipa. This group of conopeptides acts on alpha1 -adrenoceptors. Conantokin -T is a derived from Tulipa Conus toxin.