Conus splendidulus, common name the clay cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.
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 the shell varies between 43 mm and 70 mm. The shell has an olive-brown, or ash color, with a white central band, and usually another obsolete one below the shoulder-angle, encircled by numerous chestnut and white articulated lines. The spire is maculated with chestnut. The aperture has a light chocolate color with a central white band.G.W. Tryon (1884) Manual of Conchology, structural and systematic, with illustrations of the species, vol. VI; Philadelphia, Academy of Natural Sciences (described as identical to Conus classiarius (nomen nudum) )
Distribution This marine species occurs in the Gulf of Aden, off Northern Somalia and off the Laccadives.
References
Petit, R. E. (2009). George Brettingham Sowerby, I, II & III: their conchological publications and molluscan taxa. Zootaxa. 2189: 1–218 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
External links
The Conus Biodiversity website Cone Shells - Knights of the Sea