THE WHELK. 



375 



of sounds are gathered in its wide lip, and, being returned to the ear in a broken and 

 confused manner, give forth a monotonous sound, rising and falling at intervals, and 

 are thought by the uneducated to be the imprisoned murmurs of the waves. For this 

 reason, the shell is popularly known as ROARING BUCKIE. In some places the empty 

 shell is used as a lamp, the cavity containing the oil and the wick being drawn through 

 the canal, thus producing a charmingly elegant lamp, which even exceeds in beauty 

 the classical forms of the ancients, and quite equals them in efficacy. 



Another species, the GIANT SPINDLE (Fusus colosseus\ is remarkable as being one of 

 the largest living examples of the gasteropods. 



In the illustration, the animal of the Spindle-shell is seen just in the act of protrud- 

 ing itself from its habitation, in order to show the position of the eyes and the spotted 

 mantle. The foot of the animal is moderately broad, and the operculum is small, and 

 shaped not unlike a sea mussel-shell. The color of the Spindle-shell is nearly white, 

 and almost uniformly tinted, but darkening slightly towards the point. 



TULIP WHELK. Fasclolaria Tullpa. 



?****% 

 SPINDLE SHELI Fusus cohit. 



WE now arrive at another and rather larger family, of which the common WHELK is 

 a familiar example. 



This is one of the most carnivorous of our molluscs, and among the creatures of its 

 own class is as destructive as the lion among the herds of antelopes. Its long tongue, 

 armed with row upon row of curved and sharped-edged teeth, harder than the notches 

 of a file, and keen as the edge of a lancet, is a most irresistible instrument when rightly 

 applied, drilling a circular hole through the thickest shells as easily as a carpenter's 

 centre-bit works its way through a deal board. 



The front of the tongue often has its teeth sadly broken, or even wanting altogether, 

 but their place is soon supplied by others, which make their way gradually forward, 

 and are brought successively into use as wanted. As a general rule, there are about a 

 hundred rows of teeth in the Whelk's tongue, each row contains three teeth ; and 

 each tooth is deeply cleft into several notches, which practically gives the creature so 

 many additional teeth. 



