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Patterns of Boreholes on Gastropod Shells Taken from the Jersey Shore

Adrian Perono

Introduction

A study done in Korea by Kong et al. (2017) observed the boreholes on three bivalve

species (Mactra chinensis, Felaniella usta, and Nuttallia japonica) collected from the sand beach

at Sagot Cape, Baengnyeongdo, Korea. These boreholes were likely drilled by a naticid

gastropod inhabiting the tidal flat of Baengnyeongdo named Glossaulax didyma didyma. The

study found that in the case of the Mactra shells, 96% of the holes were positioned on the umbo.

This strong site selectivity for boreholes at the umbo is due to the fact that the main body mass of

the bivalve lies underneath the umbo.

A study by Randolph and Maccarone (2018) examined the patterns of gastropod

predation on 10 bivalve species along the upper Texas Gulf Coast. The predators of these bivalve

species are most likely the Southern oyster drill (Stramonita haemastoma) and the moon snail

(Neverita duplicata). They found that bivalve species with thicker shells were selected by larger

predators, based on drill-hole diameter.

A Delta Journal article written by Thomas (2007) details the feeding habits of

carnivorous marine snails. It discusses that beveled holes are drilled by gastropods using an

accessory boring organ that secretes hydrochloric acid, enzymes, and other substances to soften

the prey’s shell. After that, the snails scrape it away with their radula and scrape out the clam’s

tissue. The article also states that the hole is almost always located near the umbo.
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Hypothesis

If gastropods predate on bivalves, then boreholes will be primarily found in Quadrant 2.

This is likely because the main body mass of the bivalve lies underneath the umbo which is

located in Quadrant 2.

Materials

● Bivalves

● Trays

● Buckets

● 3x3 Grids of Triangular, Ovate, and Rectangular Bivalves

● Shell identification guides

Experimental Methods

1. Gather bivalves from 27th Street in Ship Bottom, Long Beach Island

2. Sort the bivalves into two groups based on whether they exhibit boreholes or not

3. Place the bivalves without boreholes in a bucket separate from the other specimens

4. Identify the species of bivalves with boreholes using shell identification guides

5. Group together bivalves of the same species

6. Record the quadrant the boreholes of the bivalves were present on a spreadsheet
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Results

Table 1: Species Collected and the Quadrant Their Borehole(s) was/were Found in

Common Name Scientific Name Shape # of Shells Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 Q6 Q7 Q8 Q9 Total Holes

Atlantic Surf Clam Spisula solidissima Triangular 91 0 79 0 2 6 3 0 0 1 91
Bay Scallops Argopecten iradians Ovate 7 1 0 0 1 3 0 0 3 0 8
Blood Ark Anadara granosa Triangular 9 2 1 1 2 1 0 0 0 2 9
Blue Mussel Mytilus edulis Triangular 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 2

Dwarf Surf Clam Mulinia lateralis Triangular 29 0 28 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 29

False Angelwing Petricolaria pholadiformis Circular 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Faust Tellin Tellina fausta Triangular 64 0 63 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 65
Ida's Tellin Tellina idae Triangular 47 1 4 3 12 16 8 3 0 0 47
Jingle Shell Anomia simplex Ovate 34 0 58 1 2 6 1 0 0 0 68
Smooth Astarte Astarte castanea Triangular 42 4 3 9 5 5 10 4 1 1 42
Transverse Ark Anadara transversa Triangular 14 5 3 1 2 2 0 0 1 0 14
Variable Coquina Donax variabilis Rectangular 7 0 1 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 7
Unidentified shells N/A Triangular 11 0 8 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 11
Totals: 358 13 248 18 30 46 22 7 5 5 394

Figure 1: Number of Boreholes in Quadrant 1-9 in Bivalves

Analysis

248 boreholes or 62.9% of the boreholes are present in Quadrant 2 (Table 1). It also

shows that 46 boreholes or 11.7% of the boreholes are present in Quadrant 5. The majority of the

boreholes were found in Quadrant 2 or 5. Quarters 7, 8, and 9 have the least amount of boreholes

with a combined amount of 17 boreholes or 4.4% of the boreholes (Figure 1).

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Conclusion

In conclusion, my hypothesis was correct. The majority of boreholes occur in Quadrants

2 or 5 or the area otherwise known as the umbo. This is because the main body mass of the

bivalve lies underneath the umbo. If I were to do this project again, I would record the species of

shells without boreholes. Perhaps there is a noticeable pattern concerning species that exhibit

boreholes and others that do not.

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References

Kong, D.-Y., Lee, M.-H., Park, C. H., & Lee, S.-J. (2017). Boreholes on three bivalve species

found on the sand beach at Sagot Cape, Baengnyeongdo, Korea. Journal of Asia-Pacific

Biodiversity, 10(4), 441–447. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.japb.2017.09.004

Randolph, S. J., & Maccarone, A. D. (2018). PATTERNS OF GASTROPOD MOLLUSK

PREDATION ON BIVALVE MOLLUSKS ALONG THE UPPER TEXAS GULF

COAST. Texas Journal of Science, 70(1), Article 5.

https://doi.org/10.32011/txjsci_70_1_article5

Thomas, B. (2007, July 15). Carnivorous Marine Snails | Center for Environmental

Communication | Loyola University New Orleans. Www.Loyno.Edu; Loyola University

New Orleans.

http://www.loyno.edu/lucec/natural-history-writings/carnivorous-marine-snails