Leptoconus

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Leptoconus
Abapertural view of a shell of Leptoconus milneedwardsi (Jousseaume, 1894).
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Caenogastropoda
clade Hypsogastropoda
clade Neogastropoda
Superfamily:
Conoidea
Family:
Conidae
Genus:
Conus
Subgenus:
Leptoconus

Swainson, 1840
Type species
Conus amadis Gmelin, 1791
Synonyms
  • Conus (Leptoconus) Swainson, 1840
  • Nataliconus Tucker & Tenorio, 2009

Leptoconus is a

mollusks in the genus Conus, family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.[1]

In the latest classification of the family Conidae by Puillandre N., Duda T.F., Meyer C., Olivera B.M. & Bouchet P. (2015), Leptoconus has become a subgenus of Conus as Conus (Leptoconus) Swainson, 1840 (type species: Conus amadis Gmelin, 1791) represented as Conus Linnaeus, 1758[2]

Distinguishing characteristics

The

Tucker & Tenorio 2009 taxonomy distinguishes Leptoconus from Conus in the following ways:[3]

  • Genus Conus
    sensu stricto
     Linnaeus, 1758
Shell characters (living and fossil species)
The basic shell shape is conical to elongated conical, has a deep anal notch on the shoulder, a smooth periostracum and a small operculum. The shoulder of the shell is usually nodulose and the protoconch is usually multispiral. Markings often include the presence of tents except for black or white color variants, with the absence of spiral lines of minute tents and textile bars.
Radular tooth (not known for fossil species)
The radula has an elongated anterior section with serrations and a large exposed terminating cusp, a non-obvious waist, blade is either small or absent and has a short barb, and lacks a basal spur.
Geographical distribution
These species are found in the Indo-Pacific region.
Feeding habits
These species eat other
gastropods including cones.[3]
  • Subgenus Leptoconus Swainson, 1840
Shell characters (living and fossil species)
The shell is turbinate to elongated conical in shape, and the spire is either concave or straight and turriculated in profile. The protoconch has 1.5 whorls. The shell is ornamented with nodules which may persist or die out early. The anal notch is deep. The color pattern includes spiral rows of minute tents, however textile bars are absent. The periostracum is smooth, and the operculum is small.
Radular tooth (not known for fossil species)
The anterior section of the radular tooth is significantly longer than the length of posterior section. A basal spur is usually absent, and the barb and blade are short. The waist is not obvious. The radular tooth has serrations, and a terminating cusp.
Geographical distribution
These species are found in the Indo-Pacific region.
Feeding habits
These species are molluscivorus, meaning that these cone snails prey on other mollusks.[3]

Species list

This list of species is based on the information in the

WoRMS) list. Species within the genus Leptoconus include:[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Leptoconus Swainson, 1840. Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 06/24/11.
  2. ^ 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
  3. ^ a b c Tucker J.K. & Tenorio M.J. (2009), Systematic Classification of Recent and Fossil Conoidean Gastropods, ConchBooks, Hankenheim, Germany, 295 pp.

Further reading

  • Kohn A. A. (1992). "Chronological Taxonomy of Conus, 1758-1840". Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington and London.
  • Monteiro A. (ed.) (2007). The Cone Collector 1: 1-28.
  • Berschauer D. (2010). Technology and the Fall of the Mono-Generic Family The Cone Collector 15: pp. 51-54
  • Puillandre N., Meyer C.P., Bouchet P., and Olivera B.M. (2011), Genetic divergence and geographical variation in the deep-water Conus orbignyi complex (Mollusca: Conoidea), Zoologica Scripta 40(4) 350-363.
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