Andy:

From the Texans....the Busycon seldom get as large here as they do in
Florida.  I've found beautiful Busycon all along the Texas coast.  Certainly
a large number are broken when they are crabbed, but when found with animal
they are beautiful and definitely NOT brittle.  Also, they seem to be real
good at fixing up their shells after a major accident.  I know a lady in
Clute, Texas that has a great collection of Busycon freaks that have regrown
their shells in odd ways....

The person you really should get in touch with is Constance Boone at the
Houston Museum of Science - Strake Malacology Hall.  She has assisted in the
studies of Busycon for years.

RoseSea


----- Original Message -----
From: <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, June 24, 1999 5:21 PM
Subject: Re: Brittle Busycons


> Thanks for the information and suggestions on brittle shells. I'd like to
> hear from the Floridans and Texans, who have a lot of Busycon on their
> coasts. Are these large "whelks" relatively brittle for their size and
> shell thickness? Do you see a lot of broken whelks?
>
> As to the Gosport Sand, I should have emphasized that although the main
> shell beds are storm deposits, they are not beach windrows, but beds that
> were laid down on the shallow continental shelf. They don't show signs of
> constant wave action; in fact, the shell beds were probably covered by
> sandy mud between major storms (hurricanes).
>
> Andrew K. Rindsberg
> Geological Survey of Alabama
>