Marbled Cone Snail

When it attacks its prey it sticks out its long white proboscis to shoot a poison laden harpoon sometimes attacking its prey multiple times over.

Marbled cone snail.

In order to get its prey the cone snail injects a rapid acting venom from a dart like tooth radicula or dagger. Cone snails are among the most venomous creatures on earth. Cone snail shells range in size from less than an inch to 9 inches long. Cone snails use a radula tooth as a harpoon like structure for predation.

The unique marbled cone snail is found from the southern tip of india to okinawa japan and southeast to new caledonia and samoa. Marbled cone snail is said to be the master of deception as it hides very well. Among the most toxic are the textile geographic and tulip snails and there is a higher risk of death if the geographic and textile snails are involved all capture their prey by means of harpoon like hollow teeth radula that are rapidly jabbed into their prey to inject the toxic venom. The marbled cone snail is also known as the cigarette snail and just happens to be one of the most poisonous animals on the planet.

This means that it defines the genus for the purpose of determining whether or not other species belong to that same genus. The venom of marbled cone snail is the same as that of blue ring octopus which is powerful neurotoxin which leads to weakness and loss of co ordination. Conus marmoreus common name the marbled cone is a species of predatory sea snail a marine gastropod mollusk in the family conidae the cone snails cone shells or cones it is the type species for the genus conus this is a species which is believed to feed mostly on marine molluscs including other cone snails. Each of these harpoons is a modified tooth primarily made of chitin and formed inside the mouth of the snail in a structure known as the toxoglossan radula.

The diet of marbled cone snail is marine worms small fish mollusks and other cone snails. Are cone snails dangerous. Roughly 30 humans to date have succumbed to the poison of the marbled cone snail. A few varieties of cone snails eat fish and these are the most harmful to humans.

It feeds on other snails including some within its own species. Believe it or not one drop of venom from this snail is powerful enough to kill 20 people yep you read that right. The radula in most gastropods has rows of many small teeth and is used for grasping at food and scraping it into the mouth.