Mollusca (Phylum) > Gastropoda (Class) > Caenogastropoda (Subclass) > Neogastropoda (Order) > Muricoidea (Superfamily) > Muricidae (Family) > Muricinae (Subfamily) > Chicoreus (Genus)

Adusta murex, Burnt murex, Murex brulé, Murex ardant, 

Synonymes
Chicoreus (Triplex) brunneus (Link, 1807)
Chicoreus adustus (Lamarck, 1822)

Sous-espèces
Chicoreus (Triplex) brunneus australiensis (f) (Adams, A., 1854)
Chicoreus (Triplex) brunneus flavicunda (f) (Perry, G., 1810)
Chicoreus (Triplex) brunneus huttoniae (f) (Wright, B., 1878)
Chicoreus (Triplex) brunneus oligacanthus (f) (Euthyme, 1889)

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Chicoreus brunneus, is a species of predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Muricidae, the murex snails.

Description
The adult shell size of this species varies between 25 mm and 115 mm in length. Young specimens coated with red sponge are common under rocks at depths of less than 1 to over 30m. Old shells so heavily encrusted with growth are commonly seen exposed on rocky substrates, and appear to be eating boring bivalves in the hard bottom. Often clusters of 20 or more large shells can be found depositing large egg masses under large rocks. Rarely this species has an orange color form.

Distribution
This sea snail is found widely spread in the Indo-West Pacific, and occurs from east Africa to Polynesia, southern Japan, New South Wales and New Caledonia, Australia.