Fusitriton oregonensis
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| Oregon hairy triton | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Fusitriton oregonensis Redfield, 1846 |
The Oregon hairy triton, Fusitriton oregonensis, is a species of large predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Ranellidae, the tritons.
The snail was given its specific name oregonensis (meaning "of Oregon") to honor the Oregon Territory by conchologist John Howard Redfield in 1846.[1][2][3]
The Oregon hairy triton was declared the state seashell of Oregon in 1989 by the 65th Legislative Assembly.[4]
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[edit] Distribution
The Oregon hairy triton is native to the northwestern coast of North America. The shells are found from Alaska to California, as well as in northern Japan. They often wash up on the coast at high tide.[1][2]
[edit] Habitat
This species is common subtidally.[5]
[edit] Shell Description
The shells grow from three to five inches long.[6] The shell is light brown in color and is covered with gray-brown bristly periostracum, hence the name "hairy." The shell is an elongate cone with six whorls (or turns) around a central axis.
[edit] Life habits
Little is known of the snail's feeding habits, but they are believed to feed on mollusks,[6] ascidians ("sea squirts"),[7] and more rarely, sea urchins.[8]
[edit] References
- ^ a b State Symbols: Mushroom to Tree, Oregon Blue Book
- ^ a b Fusitriton oregonensis. Gastropods.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-16.
- ^ Harvard University Index of Botanists. Retrieved on 2007-08-16.
- ^ Chapter 186 — State Emblems; State Boundary 2005 Oregon Revised Statutes
- ^ Washington State University Extension, Intertidal Organisms EZ-ID Guides: Fusitriton oregonensis (Oregon triton)
- ^ a b eNature: Oregon Hairy Triton. eNature. Retrieved on 2007-08-16.
- ^ Young, C.M. (January 1985). "Abundance patterns of subtidal solitary ascidians in the San Juan Islands, Washington, as influenced by food preferences of the predatory snail Fusitriton oregonensis". Marine Biology 84 (3): 309–321. doi:.
- ^ Duggins, David O. (December 1983). "Starfish Predation and the Creation of Mosaic Patterns in a Kelp-Dominated Community". Ecology 64 (6): 1610–1619. doi:.
[edit] External links
- Photographs of the hairy triton shell from NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center
