Shell of the Week: The Cancellate Cone

Conus cancellatus reaches 80 mm (3.15 inches); its shell presents alternating narrower and wider spiral ridges. The color is very variable, from pure white to patterns of brown bands or spots. A periostracum (organic outer shell layer) may be light yellow to dark brown and may present rows of long hairs on the spiral ribs of the last shell whorl. The species has a very broad geographic range, living from the northern Gulf of Mexico, Florida, the Caribbean, through southern Brazil.  

Conus cancellatus for off Cape San Blas, Florida. Illustration: Patricia A. Starkey.

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