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