Conservation & Population
Some cone snail types are in danger because their homes are being destroyed and people collect their pretty shells!
Cone Snails - Facts for Kids
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Facts About Cone Snails For Kids
Climate change is hurting cone snails by making ocean waters too hot or too acidic for their shells!
Several cone snail types are protected by world laws to stop people from taking too many!
Cone snails help keep coral reef homes healthy by controlling how many of their prey animals there are!
Some cone snail types have disappeared from areas where coral reefs have been damaged!
Marine protected areas help save cone snail groups by keeping their homes safe!
Cone snails are important signs of ocean health — when they disappear, it can mean the environment has problems!
Special Abilities
Cone snails make poison that’s stronger than medicine doctors use to stop pain!
Each cone snail type makes its own special mix of poison ingredients!
Some cone snails can change their hunting way depending on what type of prey they find!
Cone snails can feel tiny changes in water that humans can’t notice!
Fun & Unique Facts
The biggest cone snail ever found was 9.1 inches (23 centimeters) long — as big as a ruler!
The smallest adult cone snail type is only 0.4 inches (1 centimeter) long — smaller than a penny!
Some cone snails can inject poison in less than 50 milliseconds — faster than you can blink!
The most expensive cone snail shell ever sold cost more than $5,000!
Scientists have found cone snail fossils that are over 55 million years old!
A single cone snail can make enough poison to affect more than 700 mice!
The fastest recorded cone snail movement was 6 inches (15 centimeters) per minute!
A cone snail’s shell is harder than a chicken egg but more bendable than ceramic!
A cone snail’s poison harpoon is as sharp as a bee’s stinger!
Some cone snails can pull their bodies into their shells faster than you can clap your hands!
A cone snail’s sense of smell is so good it can smell prey from as far away as you can throw a ball!
The biggest cone snails are about as long as your pencil!
Some cone snails can live as long as your pet hamster!
A cone snail’s poison works faster than the time it takes to say its name!
The patterns on cone snail shells are more different than the colors in your biggest crayon box!
