Conus distans
A venomous marine snail with a yellowish fawn shell.
Last updated
Almed2 · via Wikipedia: Conus distans · CC BY-SA 3.0
Conus distans, called the distant cone, is a marine gastropod mollusk belonging to the family Conidae. As with other members of the genus Conus, it is a predatory and venomous snail. Its sting can affect humans, so live specimens should be handled with caution or avoided entirely.
The shell ranges from 30 mm to 137 mm in length. It is a yellowish fawn color, with faint white bands at the middle and upper sections; these bands may be broken into irregular oblique markings rather than continuous lines.
The body whorl has faint impressed lines running around it, and the base is stained a violet-chestnut shade. The spire is low and convex, bearing blunt, rounded tubercles. The interior of the shell is white, lightly stained with violet.
This species is found in the Red Sea, across the tropical Indo-West Pacific, and off Papua New Guinea and Australia (including the Northern Territory, Queensland, and Western Australia).
Scientific classification
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumMollusca
- ClassGastropoda
- SubclassCaenogastropoda
- OrderNeogastropoda
- FamilyConidae
- GenusConus
- SpeciesConus distans
Named by Hwass in Bruguière, 1792
Close relatives
Other species of Conus with a Codexery entry.
- Conus abbas Conus abbas
- Conus abrolhosensis Conus abrolhosensis
- Conus achatinus Conus achatinus
- Conus acutangulus Conus acutangulus
- Conus aito Conus aito
- Conus ammiralis Conus ammiralis
- Conus anabathrum Conus anabathrum
- Conus anemone Conus anemone
Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Conus distans (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 215530 (CC BY 4.0)
Conservation status
Least Concern (LC)
- LC▲ this species
- NT
- VU
- EN
- CR
- EW
- EX
Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category
How big is it?
Largest length in the source, 0.14 m, next to a 1.8 m person.
Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Conus distans
Where the conus distans has been recorded
Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (877 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 54 inland records left out (institution coordinates).
Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain) · place coordinates: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Lore & Background
The shell of Conus distans varies in length from 30 mm to 137 mm. Its yellowish fawn-colored shell is obsoletely banded with white at the middle and upper part; sometimes the bands are not continuous but consist of irregular oblique markings.
The body whorl is encircled by obsolete impressed lines and is stained with violet-chestnut toward the base. The low spire is convex, with rather obtuse rounded tubercles, and the white interior is stained with light violet. This marine species occurs in the Red Sea, in the tropical Indo-West Pacific, and off Papua New Guinea and Australia, including the Northern Territory, Queensland, and Western Australia.
More in Cone Snails
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Conus distans (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Classification: the source article's taxobox; order, family and genus checked against WoRMS, the World Register of Marine Species (CC BY 4.0).
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List assessment.
- Occurrence records: GBIF (CC0 / CC BY). Basemap: Natural Earth (public domain).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced