Busycon carica

Knobbed Whelk- Busycon carica

Habitat

Lives in inlets, Sounds, and offshore shallow waters

Range

From Cape Cod to Northern Florida

Description

The mollusk’s shell is 5 to 9 inches and is characterized by the knobs on the whirl.

Ecological Notes

The whelk is a carnivore that feeds on mainly bivalves. It is a good indicator of the health of the environment it is in.

Personal Information I found this shell when we were doing our second collection on the beach. It was very intact for a whelk shell.

Journal Articles

Hughes, A., Grabowski, J. (2006) Habitat context influences predator interference interactions and the strength of resource partitioning. Oecologia

This paper discusses the interactions of the whelk with its prey, bivalves.

Eversole, et. al. (2008)Age and growth of the knobbed whelk Busycon carica (Gmelin 1791) in South Carolina subtidal waters. JOURNAL OF SHELLFISH RESEARCH

This article invested the age at which Knobbed Whelks were old enough to be caught.

References http://www.dnr.sc.gov/cwcs/pdf/Knobbedwhelk.pdf

Contributed by Joe Stupica- 2010

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