Decades of unregulated harvesting—as well as habitat degradation—is putting the horse conch at risk of extinction, experts say
Horse conchs, the flashy marine snails that inhabit Florida’s colossal state seashell, live shorter lives and reproduce later than previously understood, according to new research that warns the Gulf of Mexico population could be nearing collapse.red-orange bodies bright as traffic cones
Earlier research showed the conchs’ sizes have declined over decades, “the universal sign that a tipping point is near,” says Herbert. Like other marine animals living near heavily populated coasts, horse conchs have lost considerable habitat to development and pollution, including favorite breeding grounds along mud flats and seagrass beds.
The study included the largest-known horse conch shell, a 23.9-inch beauty displayed at the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum on Florida’s Sanibel Island. The scientists couldn’t drill into the record shell but estimated its age by plotting its whorls alongside the other shells’ growth curves and their isotope values. They concluded the animal that built it lived 16 years, a likely maximum age for the species.
In the past, however, they had a much larger range, according to Herbert’s longer-term research comparing the locations of dead shells in the Gulf with the living animals in their habitats today. The shrinking range could mean either that they are becoming rarer, or that some populations are already extinct, Herbert says.
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