Species profile
Knobbed Whelk
Busycon carica
At a glance
Knobbed Whelk (Busycon carica) is a marine snail regulated in 7 of 66 jurisdictions tracked by CatchRules across the U.S. and Canada.
The strictest bag limit is 1 (Georgia); the most generous is 75 (Federal Waters (DFO)).
Across 3 jurisdictions with stated minimum sizes, the average minimum is 4.3 in.
Confirmed by 4,909 research-grade iNaturalist observations, with South Carolina, Massachusetts, and North Carolina the top jurisdictions by observation count.
Notable details
- It is the official state shell of both New Jersey and Georgia.
- One of the largest gastropods on the US East Coast, reaching up to 12 inches (30 cm).
- Wedges its thick shell lip into a clam's edge, then forces it open with its muscular foot.
- Females lay eggs in long strings of papery capsules that can stretch over 2 feet in length.
- The prominent knobs along each whorl's shoulder immediately distinguish it from other whelks.
Where Knobbed Whelk are seen
Jurisdictions with rules for Knobbed Whelk
Background
The knobbed whelk (Busycon carica) is a species of very large predatory sea snail, or in the USA, a whelk, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Busyconidae, the busycon whelks.
Background excerpt adapted from Wikipedia's Knobbed Whelk article (CC BY-SA). Visit Wikipedia for the full entry.
Other marine snails (whelk/conch) on CatchRules
Photo credit: iNaturalist / Wikipedia. Identification reference only — verify regulations with the issuing wildlife agency before retaining a catch.