About the State Seashell of Texas

History of

• The Lighting whelk was officially declared Texas' state shell in 1987, by the 70th Legislature. Mildred Tate, who founded the first shell club in Brazosport, Texas and was the founder of the Brazosport Museum of Natural Science, championed the effort to make the lightning whelk Texas' state shell. She was 70 at the time she launched her cause. Representative John Willy presented the state shell resolution, which many believed might help promote local tourism. The state shell bill was signed by Texas' governor on April 22, 1987. The following year Tate was named Brazosport's Outstanding Woman. A staff member of the Smithsonian noted that Tate was the individual who most encouraged the study of conchology in her region in Texas, as both a hobby and science.

Identification

• The lightning whelk's shell is off-white, tan or gray with thin brown lightning streaks that run from the top to the bottom of the shell. The size ranges from 2 1/2 to 16 inches in length. The shell's spiral runs counterclockwise and is referred to as left-handed. Inside the shell is white. The lightning whelk itself is a snail-like creature that is dark brown or black.

Features

• The lightning whelk eats primarily oysters, scallops and clams, making two shelled invertebrates its mainstay. Creatures who prey on the lightning include other whelk along with gulls and crabs. Late October to early January is the lightning whelk's mating season, with eggs beginning to hatch in May. The young hatchlings often eat the eggs that did not hatch. When it is older it usees the edge of its shell like a crowbar to pry open the shell of its prey.

Geography

• The lightning whelk is found on the Gulf Coast, along Texas and North Carolina. They usually inhabit the bottoms of shallow bays, in mud, sand or grassy areas.

Benefits

• Native Americans harvested lightning whelks. The whelks were used as food, and their shells were used in religious ceremonies, and as tools and domestic utensils. The distinct spiral pattern of the shells led some tribes to believe they were sacred objects. Hermit crabs move into unoccupied shells of the lightning whelk.