California Sea Grant College Program

The goal of this project was to characterize basic biochemical and mechanical properties of egg capsules from several species of whelk snails, including the channeled whelk snail, Busycon canaliculatum, native to the East Coast, and the Kellet’s whelk snail, Kelletia kelletii, native to the West Coast. Tests focused on quantifying the material’s response to being stretched. Of particular interest was measuring the amount of energy dissipated as the material returns to its original shape. Other tests involved stretching and relaxing the material repeatedly.