Welcome to the next installment of Shit That Can Kill You Friday's!
This week STCKYF features the Cone Snail.
Also known as the Assassin of the Sea, the cone snail is one thing you do not want to mess with. It packs a devastating punch relative to its size. Much like the funnel Web spider that we learned about last week, the cone snail is also a fast killer. Nicknamed the "cigarette snail", the victim only has enough time to smoke a cigarette (preferably a cowboy killer) before they assume room temperature (die). Their venom causes intense localized pain, swelling, numbness, vomiting, paralysis, changes in vision, and worst of all respiratory failure.
So what makes the Assassin of the Sea so dangerous to humans? Well, they are dangerous quite simply because they are beautiful. People at the beach have picked up live cone snails thinking it was a harmless uninhabited shell to only find out that a true cold blooded killer was inside. As fate would have it, the most sought after cone snail shell happens to be from the deadliest species of cone snail in the world, the Geographic Cone Snail. This species grows to 4-6 inches in length and indigenous to the Indo-Pacific. After getting stung by a geographic cone snail, it is vital to receive an anti-venom injection as quickly as possible... oh wait... THERE IS NO ANTI-VENOM! The complexity of the venom has prevented an effective anti-venom from being developed. All medical personnel can do is to try and keep you alive until the toxin wears off or you venture down to Davy Jones' Locker.
Isolated compounds from the cone snail's venom have been used to create Zicontide, a pain reliever 10,000 times more powerful than morphine. I think that shows the power of the cone snail's sting. I also hope that this pain medicine is used to treat patients who have been stung by a cone snail, kinda poetic if you ask me.
If you ever travel to a tropical climate, there are cone snails in the water. Guaranteed. Don't pick them up, don't approach them, and just to be extra safe you probably shouldn't even look at them.
Stay safe out there.
--
Charles R Mercer
Amateur Oceanographer
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