Tusk shells, class Scaphopoda, are marine mollusks with a distinctive tapering, tube-like shell open at both ends, resembling a miniature elephant tusk, that they use to burrow tail-first into soft sea-floor sediment while leaving the narrow end projecting upward. They lack eyes and gills entirely, breathing through their mantle, and feed using thread-like tentacles called captacula that extend from the head to capture tiny food particles such as foraminifera from the surrounding sediment.
Facts
Identification
Distinguishing AppearanceShells range in length from 0.5 to 18 cm, tapering from anterior to posterior 1 Scientific Name Sources
1. Tusk shell (Wikipedia)
Introduction
Scaphopoda
Introduction, shell size clause
Shells of species within this class range in length 0.5
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