Melo melo, common name the Indian volute or bailer shell (also spelled baler),
Distribution
The distribution of this species is restricted to
Southeast Asia, from
Burma,
Thailand and
Malaysia, to the South China Sea and the
Philippines.
[Poutiers, J. M. (1998). Gastropods in: FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes: The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific Volume 1. Seaweeds, corals, bivalves and gastropods. Rome, FAO, 1998. p. 598.]
Habitat
This large sea snail is known to live in
littoral and shallow
sublittoral zones. It usually dwells in muddy bottoms at a maximum depth of nearly 20 m.
Feeding
Melo melo is known to be carnivorous, as laboratory experiments have shown. It is a specialized predator of other continental shelf predatory gastropods, notably
Hemifusus tuba (
Melongenidae) and
Babylonia lutosa (
Buccinidae).
It is also a known predator of the dog conch,
Strombus canarium (
Strombidae).
[Cob, Z. C; Arshad, A; Bujang, J. S; Ghaffar, M. A. (2009). "Age, Growth, Mortality and Population Structure of Strombus canarium(Gastropoda: Strombidae): Variations in Male and Female Sub-Populations". Journal of Applied Sciences 9 (18), 3287–3297. [1]]
Shell description
The maximum shell length of this species is up to 275 mm, commonly to 175 mm.
The notably large shell of Melo melo has a bulbous or nearly oval outline, with a smooth outer surface presenting distinguishable growth lines. The outside of shell colour is commonly pale orange, sometimes presenting irregular banding of brown spots, while the interior is glossy cream, becoming light yellow near its margin.
Pearls
This volute is known to produce
; however, the
Melo melo pearl has no
nacre, unlike the pearl of a
pearl oyster. The GIA and CIBJO now simply use the term 'pearl' (or, where appropriate, the more descriptive term 'non-nacreous pearl') when referring to such items, rather than the previously used term 'calcareous concretion'
[ CIBJO 'Pearl Book' – Natural, Cultured & Imitation Pearls — Terminology & Classification (2007-05-1)][ GIA 'Gems & Gemology' magazine news archive] and, under Federal Trade Commission rules, various mollusc pearls may be referred to as 'pearls' without any qualification.
[ Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries. Ftc.gov (30 May 1996). Retrieved on 2012-04-17.] The melo pearl is created by the mollusc in the same way as other pearls are created by other molluscs.
See also: Conch Pearl
Human use
This volute is often collected as
seafood by local fishermen. The shells are also often used as decoration, or as scoops for powdery substances in local markets.
The shell is also traditionally utilized by the native fishermen to bail their boats, therefore it is commonly called "bailer shell".
This snail is eaten in Vietnamese cuisine in dishes such as coconut milk sea snails ().
See also
