Whelk
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
A whelk is a large marine gastropod (snail) found in temperate waters. Whelks are different from, but sometimes confused as, conches (pronounced "Konks"). Whelks are scavengers and carnivores, equipped with an extensible proboscis that is tipped with a file-like radula. The radula is used to bore holes through the shells of clams, crabs and lobsters. They also have a large, muscular foot with which they hold their victims.
Welks have a spiral shell with tubercles (or spines) along the shoulder. Like other mollusks, whelks have a mantle, which is a thin layer of tissue located between the body and the shell that creates the shell. Welks build their hard shells from calcium carbonate they extract from the seas. The shells can grow up to 9.5 inches (24 cm) long. The shell is generally light gray to tan, often having brown and white streaks. The shells coils dextrally (right-handed, or in a clock-wise direction) and have a long siphonal canal. The shell shape of individual specimens may vary widely in both coloration and sculpture.
The Knobbed whelk, Busycon carica, is the largest species, ranging up to 16 in. (40.6 cm). The Channeled whelk is slightly smaller. Both of these species are found from Cape Cod, Massachusetts to northern Florida. Knobbed Whelks eat clams. They open the clam with their hard shell and insert their long proboscis. Today the Knobbed Whelk is a common predator of the intertidal mudflats and can be found offshore to 26 fathoms (48 m).
Whelks are classified in the phylum Mollusca, class Gastropoda, order Neogastropoda, family Melongenidae, subfamily Bucyconinae.
See Also
References
- The Georgia Shell Club webpage entry for Whelk (http://www.arches.uga.edu/~amylyne/GSC/whelk.html)
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