About Conus catus Hwass, 1792
The adult shell of Conus catus Hwass, 1792 ranges in size from 24 mm to 52 mm. The shell has a bulbous shape, with a convex, striate spire. The body whorl is also striate; its striae are rounded, usually indistinct in the upper section and granular in the lower section. The base shell color is olive, chestnut-brown, chocolate-brown, or pink-brown, with varied white marbling and flecks. A faint white band often appears below the middle of the shell. In the variety nigropunctatus, the shell shares the coloration described above, and is also encircled by rows of chocolate-colored dots. This species is found in the Red Sea; in the Indian Ocean off Aldabra Atoll, Chagos, Madagascar, Mauritius, Tanzania, and KwaZulu-Natal; in the tropical Indo-West Pacific Region including Papua New Guinea, the Marquesas, and New Caledonia; and off Australia in New South Wales, the Northern Territory, Queensland, and Western Australia.
