Edaphus Cone Shell, Conus edaphus

Edaphus Cone Shell, Conus edaphus. Shell collected off the beach  in the greater Los Barilles area, Baja California Sur, March 2023. Size: 1.9 cm (0.8 inches) x 1.2 cm (0.5 inches).  Collection courtesy of Mark and Becky Fontenont, Las Barilles. Photograph and Identification courtesy of Colin Campbell, DVM, Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur.

Edaphus Cone Shell, Conus edaphus. Shell collected off the beach  in the greater Los Barilles area, Baja California Sur, March 2023. Size: 2.9 cm (1.2 inches) x 1.8 cm (0.7 inches).  Collection courtesy of Mark and Becky Fontenont, Las Barilles. Photograph and Identification courtesy of Colin Campbell, DVM, Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur.

The Edaphus Cone, Conus edaphus (Dahl, 1910), is a gastropod mollusk that is a member of the Conidae Family of Cones. They are  known in Mexico as cono a cuadro.

The Edaphus Cone Shell is small, short and solid with a short, pointed spire, rounded shoulders and slightly convex sides. Overall they are white to light yellow in color with rectangular dark yellow to brownish orange blotches that spiral down the body whorl. The interior of the aperture is a rosy white and the region around the canal is a deep rose color. They are composed of two and a half translucent whitish whorls and a dimple at the apex. They have eight and one-half whorls of which the first five have irregular shoulders and are obscurely, minutely beaded. The fasciole between the shoulder and the suture behind it is depressed, with two strong spiral sulci running in it and small interspaces. The aperture is narrow, parallel-sided and the outer lip is straight with the anterior and posterior sinuses being moderately deep.

Edaphus Cone Shells reach a maximum of 8.2 cm (3.2 inches) in length and 5.7 cm (2.3 inches) in height. They are highly predatory and venomous and are capable of stinging humans. They are found throughout the Sea of Cortez, along the West Coast of Mexico, and south to Panama within sand and gravel substrate in the intertidal zone to depths up to 78 m (225 feet).

The Edaphus Cone Shell is very similar to and easily confused with the Tesselated Cone Shell, Conus tessulatus (smaller blotches, wider profile).

Synonyms: Conus Linnaeus, Lithoconus edaphus, Tesselliconus edaphus and Tesselliconus tessulatus.