374 



CONES; VOLUTES. 



coloured 



are used in the same way in various parts of the world. In the 

 Friendly Islands, permission to wear the Cypr&a aurantia, or 

 Orange Cowry, as an ornament, is only granted to persons of 

 the highest rank. The Cyprcea aurora, which is considered the 

 most rare species of the entire genus, is suspended by the New 

 Zealanders to their dress as an ornament. 



987. The CONID^:, or Cones, like the Cowries, have the 

 aperture of the shell very long and narrow ; but the outer mar- 

 gin is not inflected, and the form of the shell is quite different. 

 The whole or the greater part of the spire is flat, and this forms 

 the widest part of the shell, which then tapers away in a regu- 

 larly conical form to the anterior extremity, where we find the 

 notch for the passage of the siphon. The foot bears a very small 

 operculum ; and the lingual teeth are long and arranged in pairs. 

 They are very predatory in their habits, and some of them are 

 said to bite the hands of their captors. The shells of this family 



are in general very beautifully 

 and their markings 

 a peculiar clearness 

 and definiteness. Some of the 

 species are so highly valued 

 by collectors, as to bring a 

 higher price than almost any 

 other shell ; as much as three 

 hundred guineas having been 

 given for a single specimen. 

 The Cones are found abund- 

 antly on the shores of all tro- 

 pical countries, particularly of 



Asia ; but they become more rare as they approach the northern 

 hemisphere ; and a few species only are found in the Mediter- 

 ranean. 



988. The VOLUTHWE, or Volutes, which are also remarkable 

 for the beauty of their shells, somewhat resemble the Cypraeidce 

 in the structure of the animal, of which the mantle usually 

 covers a part of the shell, and in the absence of the operculum ; 

 but the outer margin of the aperture of the shell is not inflected, 



Fio. 667. CONUS GENERALIS. 



