Details of the yellow speckled foot of the common dogwhelk. Doringbaai, Western Cape (2020). Extraordinarily variable (hence, dubia). Aperture usually large. Body whorl weakly ridged. Colour variable, from grey with black flames, to red-brown with dotted bands, plain grey or brown. Aperture usually dark, often purple. About 20 mm. Extends almost to the high-tide mark… Continue reading Common dogwhelk (Nucella dubia)
Category: Whelks
Knobbly dogwhelk (Mancinella capensis)
Details of the rows of tubercles on the knobbly dogwhelk. Port Alfred, Eastern Cape (2024) - iNaturalist Formerly named Thais capensis or Thylothais capensis. Spire almost as long as the aperture. Grey, with 3 - 4 spiral rows of obvious, paler tubercles. About 40 mm. Hides under rocks in low-shore pools or shallow waters. Eats… Continue reading Knobbly dogwhelk (Mancinella capensis)
Variable burnupena (Burnupena lagenaria)
Variable burnupena outgrown by a slipper limpet. Port Alfred, Eastern Cape (2022). Shell is shorter (spire less than half the aperture length) and often has wavy dark flames.The commonest species on the South-East coast, where it has obvious coarse spiral ridges and its aperture is violet-brown, or yellow. On the West coast, it has an… Continue reading Variable burnupena (Burnupena lagenaria)
Ridged burnupena (Burnupena cincta)
Ridged burnupena cruising at the bottom of a rock pool and covered with patches of encrusting coralline algae. Fishhoek, Western Cape (2020). Shell robust. Outer surface with coarse spiral ridges, although West Coast specimens may lack these. Aperture about 1.5 times longer than the spire. Posterior end of outer lip strongly kinked inwards. Dull brown,… Continue reading Ridged burnupena (Burnupena cincta)
Scaly dogwhelk (Nucella squamosa)
Details of the operculum and the foot of the scaly dogwhelk. Unknown location, South Africa (2021). About 15 spiral ridges overlies longitudinal ridges, giving the shell a scaly (squamous) appearance.Operculum horny, brown-orange. Foot light orange, speckled white. About 35 mm. Occurs low on the shore or subtidally. Lays egg capsules resembling flat clubs. Shell usually… Continue reading Scaly dogwhelk (Nucella squamosa)
Girdled dogwhelk (Trochia cingulata)
Whelk with spiral tube worms (Spirorbinae) and chiton on the shell. Jacobsbaai, Western Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Previously know as Nucella cingulata. White or blue-grey, usually girdled with 1 to 4 strong spiral ridges. About 30 mm. Common among mussels, drilling neat cylindrical holes through their shells. The mussels can, however, retaliate by binding the… Continue reading Girdled dogwhelk (Trochia cingulata)
Flame-patterned burnupena (Burnupena catarrhacta)
Whelk with a delicate flame pattern, and a slipper limpet (Crepidula porcellana) attached to its shell. Hondeklipbaai, Northern Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Previously know as Burnupena delalandii. Shell elongated (length twice width), smooth by crossed by numerous fine spiral ridges. Juveniles often patterned with alternating dark and light streaks or 'flames', later obscured by erosion… Continue reading Flame-patterned burnupena (Burnupena catarrhacta)
F*CK FISH 