The purple cone (Conus purpurascens), also called the South Sea cone snail, is a species of venomous sea snail in the cone snail family Conidae. It is native to the central and eastern regions of the Pacific Ocean, including the Gulf of California and Galápagos Islands. While its shell grows to only one to three inches long, this snail is armed with a venomous radula which it fires from its proboscis to spear prey. Its venom contains conantokin-P, which it uses to kill small fish that it eats. Con-P is also potentially deadly to other vertebrates; as a result, this snail is quite dangerous and should generally not be handled if encountered. There are about 30 reports of humans dying from cone snail bites; while the toxin contains an analgesic compound and so is not painful, it can be fatal in as little as five minutes.
