Gastropods · Neogastropoda · Nassariidae

Netted Dog Whelk

Nassarius reticulatus

Not Evaluated

It has not yet been assessed against the IUCN criteria. See full glossary

A small scavenging snail with a shell engraved in a lattice, which spends its time buried in the sand with only its siphon showing. When it detects the smell of a dead animal it emerges and moves rapidly towards it, sometimes in groups of dozens. Its current scientific name is Tritia reticulata.

Size

2 cm – 3.5 cm

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Social structure

Colony

Lives in large concentrations, often for breeding reasons.

Sighting difficulty

Unknown

OceanCarnivore Colonial Ocean Mollusc

24countries

Fun facts

It detects carrion several metres away thanks to its siphon, which works as a steerable smelling tube.
It is one of the species in which imposex was documented — the masculinisation of females caused by tributyltin antifouling paint on ships' hulls.
It is a specialised scavenger. It buries itself in the sand leaving only its siphon out, and when it smells a dead animal it emerges en masse: within seconds there can be dozens of them on the carcass.
It has been widely used as a bioindicator of tributyltin pollution, because it develops imposex just as the common whelk does.
Its shell, with a lattice of crossing spiral and axial cords, gives it the name netted dog whelk.