Whelk shell. X-ray of the shell of an unidentified whelk. The shell is empty of contents, with the inner chambers and spiral whorls visible. At centre

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Whelk shell. X-ray of the shell of an unidentified whelk. The shell is empty of contents, with the inner chambers and spiral whorls visible. At centre right is a siphonal canal through which a water current is channelled over the whelks gills. In many whelks this canal bearing a siphon acts as a type of nostril, and it is able to sample and smell substances in the water. In this way many whelks can find their prey or scavenge on dead marine animals.

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Size: 3548px × 4993px
Photo credit: © D. ROBERTS/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: -ray, animal, form, invertebrates, mollusca, nature, shell, spiral, whelk, wildlife, xray, zoology