The cone snail is famous for using a venomous harpoon-like tooth to capture prey.
Cone snails are predatory marine gastropods that live mainly in tropical and subtropical seas. A cone snail can extend a specialized, hollow tooth from a flexible proboscis and inject venom into prey. The tooth is often compared with a tiny harpoon because it can be fired rapidly and then withdrawn.
Their venom contains conotoxins, a complex mixture of compounds that affect nerves and muscles. Some species hunt fish, while others target worms or molluscs. Fish-eating cone snails can be especially dangerous to humans because their venom may cause paralysis.
The striking shells are widely collected, but shell appearance alone does not identify a harmless species. There are hundreds of cone snail species, and handling a live specimen is unsafe. Researchers have also studied conotoxins as potential sources of medicines and pain treatments.