Whelk at the wreck of SAS Pietermaritzburg P7260797

Whelk (also known as scungilli) is a

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...

applied to various kinds of

sea snail Sea snail is a common name for slow-moving marine gastropod molluscs, usually with visible external shells, such as whelk or abalone. They share the taxonomic class Gastropoda with slugs, which are distinguished from snails primarily by the a ...

. Although a number of whelks are relatively large and are in the family Buccinidae (the true whelks), the word ''whelk'' is also applied to some other marine

gastropod The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...

species within several families of sea snails that are not very closely related. Many have historically been used, or are still used, by humans and other animals as food. In a reference serving of whelk, there are of

food energy Food energy is chemical energy that animals (including humans) derive from their food to sustain their metabolism, including their muscular activity. Most animals derive most of their energy from aerobic respiration, namely combining the carbohy ...

, 24 g of protein, 0.34 g of fat, and 8 g of carbohydrates. Dogwinkles, a predatory species, were used in antiquity to make a rich red dye that improves in color as it ages. True whelks are carnivorous, and feed on annelids, crustaceans, mussels and other molluscs, drilling holes through shells to gain access to the soft tissues. Whelks use

chemoreceptors A chemoreceptor, also known as chemosensor, is a specialized sensory receptor which transduces a chemical substance (endogenous or induced) to generate a biological signal. This signal may be in the form of an action potential, if the chemorecept ...

to locate their prey.

Usage

The

"whelk" is also spelled ''welk'' or even ''wilk''. The species, genera and families referred to by this common name vary a great deal from one geographic area to another.

United States

In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, ''whelk'' refers to several large edible species in the genera ''

Busycon ''Busycon'' is a genus of very large edible sea snails in the subfamily Busyconinae. These snails are commonly known in the United States as ''whelks'' or ''Busycon whelks''. Less commonly they are loosely, and somewhat misleadingly, called "con ...

'' and ''

Busycotypus ''Busycotypus'' is a genus of very large sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the subfamily Busycotypinae . In the United States, these are commonly known as whelks.Bouchet, P. (2015). Busycotypus Wenz, 1943. In: MolluscaBase (2015). Acc ...

'', which are now classified in the family Buccinidae. These are sometimes called ''

whelks''. In addition, the unrelated invasive

murex ''Murex'' is a genus of medium to large sized predatory tropical sea snails. These are carnivorous marine gastropod molluscs in the family Muricidae, commonly called "murexes" or "rock snails".Houart, R.; Gofas, S. (2010). Murex Linnaeus, 175 ...

'' Rapana venosa'' is referred to as the ''Veined rapa whelk'' or ''Asian rapa whelk'' in the family

Muricidae Muricidae is a large and varied taxonomic family of small to large predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks, commonly known as murex snails or rock snails. With about 1,600 living species, the Muricidae represent almost 10% of the Neoga ...

Brazil

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, there is a very popular

Afro-Brazilian Afro-Brazilians ( pt, afro-brasileiros; ) are Brazilians who have predominantly African ancestry (see " preto"). Most members of another group of people, multiracial Brazilians or ''pardos'', may also have a range of degree of African ancestry. ...

divination game practiced by older women of African ancestry called ''jogo de búzios'' (game of whelks), which uses empty shells of these gastropods.

British Isles, Belgium, Netherlands

In the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isl ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

(''wulk''/''wullok''), the word is used for a number of species in the family Buccinidae, especially ''

Buccinum undatum ''Buccinum undatum'', the common whelk or the waved buccinum, is a large, edible marine gastropod in the family Buccinidae, the "true whelks".Fraussen, K.; Gofas, S. (2014). Buccinum undatum Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: World Register of ...

'', an edible

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an and Northern Atlantic species. In the British Isles, the common name "dog whelk" is used for ''

Nucella lapillus The dog whelk, dogwhelk, or Atlantic dogwinkle (''Nucella lapillus'') is a species of predatory sea snail, a carnivorous marine gastropod in the family Muricidae, the rock snails. ''Nucella lapillus'' was originally described by Carl Linnaeu ...

'' (family Muricidae) and for '' Nassarius'' species (family

Nassariidae The Nassariidae, Nassa mud snails (USA), or dog whelks (UK), are a taxonomic family of small to medium-sized sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the clade Neogastropoda. "Dog whelk" also refers to ''Nucella lapillus''. Shell description ...

). Historically, they were a popular street food in Victorian London, typically located close to public houses and theatres.

Scotland

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, the word "whelk" is also used to mean the periwinkle (''Littorina littorea''), family

Littorinidae The Littorinidae are a Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic family (biology), family of over 200 species of sea snails, marine (ocean), marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Littorinimorpha, commonly known as periwinkles and found worldwide. Names In ...

.Multilingual Dictionary of Fish and Fish Products, prepared by the

OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate ...

, Paris, second edition, 1978

West Indies

In the English-speaking islands of the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

, the word ''whelks'' or ''wilks'' (this word is both singular and plural) is applied to a large edible

top shell ''Calliostoma'' is a genus of small to medium-sized sea snails with gills and an operculum, marine gastropod molluscs within the family Calliostomatidae, the Calliostoma top snails. Previously this genus was placed within the family Trochid ...

, ''

Cittarium pica ''Cittarium pica'', common name the West Indian top shell or magpie shell, is a species of large edible sea snail, a Marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusk in the family (biology), family Tegulidae. This species has a large black and white gas ...

'', also known as the ''magpie'' or ''

West Indian A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use it ...

top shell'', family Trochidae.

Asia

In Japan, are frequently used in

sashimi is a Japanese delicacy consisting of fresh raw fish or meat sliced into thin pieces and often eaten with soy sauce. Origin The word ''sashimi'' means "pierced body", i.e. " 刺身" = ''sashimi'', where 刺し = ''sashi'' (pierced, stu ...

and

sushi is a Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is "sushi rice," also ...

. In Vietnam, they are served in a dish called ''

Bún ốc Bún ốc ("snail vermicelli soup") is a Vietnamese dish originating from Hanoi, Vietnam. Roasted or boiled snails (ốc luộc), may be eaten first as an appetizer. Snail congee is called cháo ốc, and canh ốc chuối đậu, is a thin snail ...

'' - vermicelli with sea snails. ' () is a Korean dish consisting of whelks and with chili sauce in a salad with cold noodles. It has been a very popular side dish with alcohol for many generations.

Australia, New Zealand

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

, species of the genus '' Cabestana'' (family

Ranellidae The Ranellidae, common name the triton shells or tritons, are a taxonomic family of small to very large predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the order Littorinimorpha. Subfamilies According to the taxonomy of the Gastropoda by B ...

) are called ''predatory whelks'', and species of '' Penion'' (family Buccinidae) are called ''siphon whelks''.

Some common examples

* Channeled whelk *

Common whelk ''Buccinum undatum'', the common whelk or the waved buccinum, is a large, edible marine gastropod in the family Buccinidae, the "true whelks".Fraussen, K.; Gofas, S. (2014). Buccinum undatum Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: World Register of Ma ...

* Knobbed whelk, the state shell of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

Lightning whelk ''Sinistrofulgur perversum'', the lightning whelk, is an edible species of very large predatory sea snail or whelk, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Busyconidae, the busycon whelks. This species has a left-handed or sinistral shell. It ...

* Red whelk * Speckled whelk * "Wrinkled whelk", "inflated whelk", and "lyre whelk", common names for '' Neptunea lyrata'' * Wrinkled purple whelk

References

The_Georgia_Shell_Club_webpage_entry_for_whelk,_''Busycon
''_species.html" ;"title="Busycon">The Georgia Shell Club webpage entry for whelk, ''Busycon
'' species">Busycon">The Georgia Shell Club webpage entry for whelk, ''Busycon
'' species

External links

Nutrition facts for "whelk" (species not indicated) as a food sourceThe Marine Life Information Network - The Common Whelk
{{Edible molluscs Commercial molluscs Mollusc common names