Oregon Symbols, Shell: Oregon Hairy Triton

Adopted in October 1, 1989.

In 1848, a conchologist (shell expert) named Redfield named the Fusitriton oregonensis after the Oregon Territory. Commonly called the Oregon hairy triton, the shell is the only one that shares the name of a state, and is one of only three in the world named after a location. The shells are found from Alaska to California and wash up on the Oregon coast at high tide.

The "Oregon Hairy Triton" (Fusitriton oregonesis) was declared the state seashell in 1989 by the Sixty-fifth Legislative Assemblyof Oregon.

The "Oregon Hairy Triton" was named after a conchologist (shell expert) named Redfield in 1848, after the Oregon Territory. This shell is the largest in the state, and reaches lengths of up to five inches. They wash up on the Oregon coast during high tides.

This mollusk member of the Gastropod Class (snails, slugs, welks, abalones) grows to about 5 inches long. It is a light brown and covered with gray-brown bristles, hence the name “hairy”. The shell is basically an elongate cone wound around an axis. Each turn around the axis constitutes a whorl. In the case of the Oregon Hairy Triton, there are 6 whorls in its shell. The Oregon Hairy Triton is usually found on rock bottoms in shallow water from Alaska to southern California (hence, we do find them in Smitty's Cove.) Occasionally, they use softer bottoms and may go as deep as 600 feet. Because of their rather non-descript appearance, they are sometimes easy to miss as a diver glides along over the bottom. They are an aggressive predator on other mollusks and sea urchins. These are carnivorous snails, and feed on sea urchins, or, if urchins aren't around, they scavenge whatever they can find.

According to Greek Mythology, Triton was a merman (half man), and demigod of the sea (half fish). Triton dwelt with his parents, the sea god Poseidon and his wife Amphitrite, in a golden palace under the sea.

Centuries later, Triton's name was applied to a family of marine gastropods, or snails. They were so named because holes were sometimes drilled in larger specimens where were then used as horns, similar to the shell trumpet Triton carried.

Ecology

The Oregon triton is a common subtidal species of marine snail found from southern Califor-nia to the Gulf of Alaska and to the eastern Bering Sea. It occurs occasionally intertidally and is com-mon to 140 fm on rock, sand, shell, or gravel sub-strate.

One of the Neptune species off Oregon, N. humboldtiana, is found from central California to southern British Columbia in depths from 100-250 fm. Its habitat may be on sand, muddy sand, and mud bottoms.

Baird's topsnail is found from Mexico to Alaska in depths of 50-300 fm.

Reproduction

Many of the marine snails have similar live histories. The sexes are separate but similar in appearance and fertilization is internal. Eggs capsules are laid, from which crawling young are hatched. Capsules are laid in clusters on rock surfaces or on the shells of other snails, the same or different species. Egg clusters vary in size, shape, color, and number of individual capsules. The mortality rate of eggs is usually high, therefore the eggs are laid in very large numbers.

The Oregon triton exhibits a courting behavior beginning approximately six months prior to egg laying. Pairing of "couples" may begin in the winter with egg laying in the summer. By mid-summer, the pairs break up. The eggs or "sea corn" are laid one by one in an ever widening circle. The triton will brood their eggs for a period of eight to nine weeks, until all are hatched to protect them from being eaten by other invertebrates, especially urchins and other Oregon tritons. Unlike the other species, larvae of the Oregon triton are pelagic.

Food and Growth

Most of these snails are probably carnivores and scavengers. The Oregon triton is probably nocturnal and feeds on a variety of invertebrates by immobilizing the prey with secretions from the proboscis gland.

A female Oregon triton is usually larger than its mated male.

Among the large Neptunea, sexual maturity occurs at a shell length of 90-110 mm, which probably corresponds to about 10 years of age. N. humboldtiana, is noted for its thin shell and is therefore lighter is weight for its size than other Neptune species and also breaks easily.