Shells of West
Sligo Shoreline
Empty Shells found on the seashore of West Sligo are the homes of Sea Snails or Creatures that have been abandoned them.
To view the picture fullsize, click on the thumbnails and the click 'Back' button on the browser. Click on their names in the table to read about them and then click on 'Top of Page' link to come back to this table.
|
Shell of Sea Snail found clinging to rocks. During the day, they look for food crawling slowly over the rocks. They live on algae. Limpets use their tongues to scrape algae off the rocks. Top of Page |
|
Barnacles are creatures that have jointed legs and shells of connected overlapping plates. Instead of crawling after food, they glue themselves to rocks, ships, pillings, abalones, and maybe even whales and wait for food to wash by. When barnacles are under water or when a wave washes over them, they reach out little feathery barbed legs to strain out plankton and absorb oxygen. Top of Page |
|
Each
shell has a number of bands of different colours. Bands can be white,
orange, brown and purple. It burrows under the sand in
shallow
waters to feed on tiny sand creatures.
Top of Page |
|
This sea creature fixes itself to rocks. It has a blue black or brown shell, pearly white inside with a darker border. It grows from 1-10cm. Mussels are often used as a starter when eating a special dinner. We saw lots of them on Portavade. They live together in huge beds in areas where there is plenty of water movement. The water carries tiny animals and plants which the mussel filters out using its gills. Top of Page |
|
Periwinkles are plant-eating snails. Periwinkles walk many metres each tide cycle on their one fleshy "foot". Look for the brown or black skin, attached to the foot. It seals the shell shut, like a submarine hatch, when the tide is out. Periwinkles graze on seaweeds, big and small. Watch for crevices in rocks that are cleared of seaweeds - there may be periwinkles living in the crevice and creeping out at high tide to graze. Top of Page |
|
The razor shell is a bi valve( two halfs to the shell) and is a filter feeder remaining close to the top of the sand. It sifts (filter) tiny animals out of the water. When the shell is feeding, it is vertical in the sand. Top of Page |
|
This bivalve also live buried in the sand about 2-3cm down below the middle shore line. It is greyish-white in colour sometimes with brown marks. It can grow to 5cm long. It lives 2-3cm under ground. The rings on its back show how old it is. When the tide is in , it pushes its two tube-like siphons to the surface of the sand to feed on tiny fish and breathe. Top of Page |
|
The Dog whelk is a common sea shell and is usually found on rocky shores. It is often found in groups from the middle shore down to the shallow water. Its colour can vary but usually is a grey/cream with dark lines around it. Dog Whelks feed on barnacles. Top of Page |
|
This creature can be found under stones feeding on seaweeds. It is around 15 mm tall. It has a silvery grey green shell with purple bands. Its shellis often found abandoned on the West Sligo Seashore. Top of Page |
