Speaking curiously,

         I wonder if larger whelks come up the mouth of the Chesapeake to
lay these large links of eggs, or if they are produced by the locals who
are said to be 9" ... it would seem that from the mass of the egg cases,
the female creates some thing of more size/mass than she is herself. Is
this possible?

                                 Anne

At 12:04 PM 5/16/03 -0400, you wrote:
> >If it is an egg case, is it the product of one female, or is it some
> kind of nursery?<
>
>A single female produces each chain.  I don't know the minimum size for
>reproduction in whelks, but the largest individuals can exceed a foot in
>length.
>
>
>     Dr. David Campbell
>     Old Seashells
>     University of Alabama
>     Biodiversity & Systematics
>     Dept. Biological Sciences
>     Box 870345
>     Tuscaloosa, AL  35487-0345 USA
>     [log in to unmask]
>
>That is Uncle Joe, taken in the masonic regalia of a Grand Exalted
>Periwinkle of the Mystic Order of Whelks-P.G. Wodehouse, Romance at
>Droitgate Spa

Anne Pemberton
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