top of page
Species Page:

Alphabet Cone

Gmelin, 1791

Conus spurius

Class:

Gastropoda

Order:

Neogastropoda

Family:

Conidae

Conidae

Image Voucher: 

ANSP 398448

Shell Information

Length (mm): 50-80

Dextral

Chirality:

The alphabet cone has a short pointed spire that can sometimes become engulfed by the body whorl creating a flat top. It has a white color patterned with blotches of dark-brown or orange. These blotches can sometimes take the form of irregular axial lines.

Description:

Ecological Information

Distribution:

Depth (m):

East Florida to Venezuala

0 to 64 meters

Diet:

Carnivore; They are prey on a variety of annelids including christmas tree worms (Spirobranchus giganteus), feather dusters (Sabellastarte magnifica), and bistleworms.

Habitat:

Marine; Soft substrates

Misc. Facts

Citations

MolluscaBase eds. (2022). MolluscaBase. Conus spurius Gmelin, 1791. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=420223 on 2022-04-22

Rosenberg, G., F. Moretzsohn, and E. F. Garc�a. 29. Gastropoda (Mollusca) of the Gulf of Mexico, Pp. 579�699 in Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico�Origins, Waters, and Biota. Biodiversity. Texas A&M University Press, College Station, Texas.

Morris, P. A. (1987). A field guide to shells: Atlantic and Gulf coasts and the West Indies (3rd ed.). Houghton Mifflin.

Rosenberg, G. 2009. Malacolog 4.1.1: A Database of Western Atlantic Marine Mollusca. [WWW database (version 4.1.1)] URL http://www.malacolog.org/

bottom of page