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PZNOW
Shorelife
Molluscs
Gastropods
Periwinkles
Limpets
Whelks
Top
Shells
Cowries
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Whelks
are common marine gastropods. Their spiral shells
are typically heavy and thick with many having a spiny appearance.
The common species found in Cornwall are Dogwhelk Nucella lapillus,
Netted Dogwhelk Hinia reticulate, Common Whelk Buccinun undatum,
Thick lipped Dog whelk, Nassarius incrassatus and sting whelk,
Ocenebra erinacea. |
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Dogwhelk
Nucella lapillus
Their
shells come in a wide range of colours
and stripes. The thickness of the shell
varies, tending to be thicker on stormier
shores. They are found from the middle
shore down to the sublittoral.
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They
are voracious carnivores, and will feed
on many shellfish species. However their
primary prey are mussels and barnacles,
both are the dominate species on exposed
to semi-exposed shores, in these environments
dog whelks can thrive.
Dog
whelks bore through mollusc shells with
their tongues (the radula), while in
the case of barnacles the foot is used
to dislodge the plates, both techniques
allowing them to reach the edible soft
parts
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Dogwhelk
Eggs
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In
spring, on rocks among the mussel beds,
the yellow eggs of the dog whelk can
be seen in the thousands.
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Bored
Hole in Mussel
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Dogwhelks
Come in a Wide Range of Colours and Stripes.
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| Netted
Dogwhelk Nassarius reticulata
Common
on the lower shore, in sandy and silty parts of rocky shores. This
brown shell reaches just over an inch. The shell is ridged, both down and across it, hence the name netted (reticulated). The netted
dog whelk is a scavenger of carrion.
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| Common
Whelk Buccinun undatum
A
large shellfish that can grow up to 5 inches in length. Such large specimens
are normally found at depths. Smaller specimens can be found at
the lowest tide marks.
They
are carnivourous, feeding on a variety of shellfish and will even
scavenge carrion such as dead fish.
The
egg clusters of this whelk are stranded on beaches in their thousands.
The clusters are comprised of individual cells, each cell containing
about 10 eggs. However
it is normal for the first lavae to develop in each cell, to eat
the others.
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Sting
Winkle Ocenebra erinacea
Sting
winkles’ shell are very heavily ridged,
more so than any of the other whelk
species found in Cornwall.
The shell
can reach two inches in length. Sting
winkles feed on bivalves, including oysters
and are sometimes known as oyster drills.
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| Thick
lipped Dog Whelk Nassarius incrassatus
A
common small whelk only which only reaches
a length of half an inch. It has a distinctive
deeply cut criss-cross patterned shell.
The shell is brownish with a dark
smudge on the siphonal canal. The thick
lip is commonly toothed.
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