Brown Cone Shell, Conus brunneus

Brown Cone Shell, Conus brunneus. Shell collected off the beach in the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, January 2012. Size: 2.8 cm (1.1 inches) x 1.7 cm (0.8 inches).

Brown Cone Shell, Conus brunneus. Shell collected off the beach at Rancho San Cosme, Baja California Sur, November 2022. Size: 3.4 cm (1.4 inches) x 2.1 cm (0.8 inches). Photograph and Identification courtesy of Colin Campbell, DVM, Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur.

The Brown Cone, Conus brunneus (W. Wood, 1828), is a gastropod mollusk that is a member of the Conidae Family of Cones. They are also known as Wood’s Brown Cone and in Mexico as cono bruno. They have a low, but sometimes sharply peaked, spire. The whorl is knobby, extending to the shoulder as coronations. The exterior of the shell is a chestnut brown color with darker brown spiral lines and white blotches. The aperture is light gray and the anterior canal has a yellow tinge. The shell has a thick periostracum. Brown Cones reach a maximum of 6.5 cm (2.6 inches) in length and 3.9 cm (1.6 inches) in height.

Brown Cones are found on and within sand substrate and under rocks in the intertidal zone to depths up to 5 m (15 feet). They range from Magdalena Bay, Baja California Sur to Ecuador, including the Clipperton Island, Cocos, Galapagos and the Revillagigedo Islands. They are found throughout the Sea of Cortez.

Synonyms are Conus interruptus and Stephanoconus brunneus.