Conus artoptus  Sowerby, 1833

Common Name

"Tender Cone"

Status

Regarded as a valid species.

Type Locality

South seas, restricted (Coomans, Moolenbeek & Wils) to Biak, New Guinea

Distribution

Indonesia and Sulu Sea to Queensland, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu

Maximum Reported Size

52.7 mm

Description

Medium-sized to moderately large, moderately light to moderately solid. Last whorl narrowly cylindrical to narrowly conoid-cylindrical; outline almost straight and nearly parallel-sided at adapical two-thirds, with attenuated sides below. Shoulder angulate to rounded. Spire of moderate height; outline straight or concave. Larval shell of about 2.25 whorls, maximum diameter about 0.85 mm. First 4-5 postnuclear whorls tuberculate. Teleoconch sutural ramps slightly convex, with 3-4 spiral grooves. Last whorl with fine, closely spaced spiral ribs from base to shoulder.

Ground colour white, sometimes tinged with pink or violet. Last whorl with irregular light reddish brown blotches usually fusing into 3 broad transverse bands, below shoulder, at centre and within basal third. Spiral bands occasionally connected by axial streaks. In some localities (e.g. Vanuatu, Solomon Is., New Caledonia), the last whorl also has spiral rows of tiny brown dots or dashes. Larval whorls white. Postnuclear sutural ramps with scattered brown spots. Aperture white.

Shell Morphometry

L 35-79 mm
RW 0.05-0.15 g/mm
(L 33-47 mm)
RD 0.39-0.47
PMD 0.72-0.84
RSH 0.12-0.15

Habitat & Habits

In 10-50 m in sand and rubble.

Discussion

C. ateralbus can be separated from C. venulatus because of its normally black last whorl and spire, with white dots, angulated shoulder and purplish aperture instead of pure white, and also from C. trochulus which has a lavender shell, straight sides, convex and purplish spire, and aperture of a darker color.

Walls [1979] synonymized C. artoptus with C. viola Cernohorsky, but the latter species has a grey to purplish red ground colour, a smooth last whorl except for a few spiral ribs basally, and only the first 1-3.5 postnuclear whorls weakly tuberculate. C. austroviola differs in its generally broader last whorl (RD 0.45-0.51), generally higher spire (RSH 0.14-0.19), bluish grey to brown colouration, and in its smoother last whorl with a few spiral ribs at base. C. nussatella can be distinguished from C. artoptus by its convex spire outline, distinct brown blotches on the teleoconch spire, and its last whorl pattern predominantly of spiral rows of reddish brown spots. In addition, C. nussatella has the maximum diameter of the last whorl generally closer to the base (PMD 0.60-0.77) and more postnuclear whorls tuberculate.

References