150 New York State Museum 



Mollusks are to be found in numbers on sandy bot- 

 toms. Among the snails are found the Ten-Ribbed 

 Snail and English Whelk, also found on rocky bot- 

 toms. The Sand Collar Snails and Moon Shells are 

 numerous and the very striking Giant Whelks are to 

 be looked for here. The Sand Collar Snails are 

 recognized by their large size, light yellowish brown 

 or bluish white color, blunt, rounded spire and simple, 

 rounded opening with sharp-edged lip. In the North- 

 ern form (Lunatia Jicros) the umbilicus or central 

 cavity of the body whorl is open, in the southern form 

 (Neverita duplicata), closed by a plug or callus. The 

 Northern Sand Collar Snail ranges from Virginia to 

 Labrador and is largest and most abundant south of 

 Cape Cod. It is one of the most characteristic species 

 of the New England and New Jersey littoral fauna 

 and is very abundant along the Eong Island shores. 

 In summer the egg capsules are common surround- 

 ing the shell. The Southern Sand Collar Snail is also 

 very abundant off the coasts of Long Island and New 

 Jersey, but its range is from Yucatan to Massachu- 

 setts bay. The Moon Shell (Natica clausa) is a north- 

 ern species which is fairly abundant on the Maine 

 coast. The shell is half an inch long and livid white 

 to light brown in color, and there is a calcareous 

 operculum which identifies it at once. Other species 

 of this and related genera are found on southern and 

 western coasts. The Giant Whelks are the largest 

 coiled shells found north of Cape Hatteras. These 

 two species, the most characteristic mollusks of the 

 American Atlantic coast, are both exceedingly com- 

 mon in sandy shore stations from Cape Cod to the 

 Gulf of Mexico, and are especially abundant along the 



