Florida Fighting Conch
Distribution: North Carolina to east and west coasts of Florida to Texas. Size: 70 to 102 mm (3 to 4 in).
Description: Color from salmon-pink, orange-brown, to brownish-red; shape somewhat broadly conic; sculpture of 9 to 10 whorls with rough axial ridges on the postnuclear whorls; from about the fourth whorl the ridges pinch up and form a row of subsutural spines, which are longest on the last 2 whorls; axial sculpture of fine striae; spire with 8 whorls, body whorl V$ height of shell; aperture long and narrow with thickened, outward-flaring lip; parietal wall and inner portion of outer lip polished, vibrantly colored salmon-pink; siphonal notch at base distinct, somewhat flared, stromboid notch just above the outer portion of siphonal notch; operculum corneous, clawlike. Habitat: Intertidal in marine grasses to a depth of approximately 183 m (600 ft).
Remarks: This species is sometimes found in an albino form with or without spines. See Clench and Abbott (1941); Ode and Speers (1968b); Andrews (1977).