Whelk
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 A Whelk shell found on a Gulf of Mexico beach in Louisiana.
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A whelk is a large marine gastropod (snail) found in temperate waters. Whelks are sometimes confused with conches. While both are gastropods they differ in shell morphology with whelks having smaller more slender shells while conch typically have a broader shell with more exaggerated knobs, Also conches tend to be more tropical vegetarians while whelks are carnivorous and temperate.
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. Like other mollusks, whelks have a mantle, a thin layer of tissue located between the body and the shell that creates the shell. Whelks build their hard shells from the calcium carbonate they extract from the seas. The shells can grow up to 9.5 inches (24 cm) long.
Whelk shells are generally light grey to tan, often having brown and white streaks. The shells coil dextrally (right-handed, or in a clockwise 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). They have tubercles (or spines) along the shoulder. 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). The channeled whelk is slightly smaller than the knobbed whelk and has a smooth shell with channels following the swirls at the top of the shell.
Another name for whelk in the United States is scungilli. The name is an Italian-American corruption of the Neapolitan word, sconciglio.
Whelks are classified in various families in the infraorder Neogastropoda.
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[edit] Classification
[edit] Family Buccinidae
[edit] Family Melongenidae
Subfamily Bucyconinae
- Genus Busycon
- Busycon candelabrum (Splendid whelk)
- Busycon carica (Knobbed whelk)
- Busycon coarctatum
- Busycon contrarium (Conrad, 1840)
- Busycon laeostomum (Kent, 1982) (Snow whelk)
- Busycon lyonsi
- Busycon perversum (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Busycon pulleyi (Prickly Whelk)
- Busycon pyrum
- Busycon sinistrum (Hollister, 1958) (Lightning whelk)
- Busycon spiratum
- Busycon spiratum pyruloides (Say, 1822) (Pear whelk)
- Genus Busycotypus
[edit] Family Muricidae
[edit] References
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