The
green abalone,
Haliotis fulgens, is a
speciesIn biology, a species is:* a taxonomic rank or* a unit at that rank ....
of large edible sea
snailThe word snail is a common name for almost all members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word snail is used in a general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. Snails lacking a shell or having only a very small one are...
, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Haliotidae, the abalones.
Green abalone can be found along the Pacific coast of
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
from
Point ConceptionPoint Conception extends into the Pacific Ocean in northwestern Santa Barbara County, California. It is the point where the Santa Barbara Channel meets the Pacific Ocean, and as the corner between the mostly north-south trending portion of coast to the north and the east-west trending part of the...
, California, to Bahia Magdalena,
Baja California SurBaja California Sur is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, south of the 28th parallel...
, Mexico.
The shell is usually brown and marked with many low, flat-topped ribs which run parallel to the 5 to 7 open respiratory pores that are elevated above the shell’s surface.
The
green abalone,
Haliotis fulgens, is a
speciesIn biology, a species is:* a taxonomic rank or* a unit at that rank ....
of large edible sea
snailThe word snail is a common name for almost all members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word snail is used in a general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. Snails lacking a shell or having only a very small one are...
, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Haliotidae, the abalones.
Range
Green abalone can be found along the Pacific coast of
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
from
Point ConceptionPoint Conception extends into the Pacific Ocean in northwestern Santa Barbara County, California. It is the point where the Santa Barbara Channel meets the Pacific Ocean, and as the corner between the mostly north-south trending portion of coast to the north and the east-west trending part of the...
, California, to Bahia Magdalena,
Baja California SurBaja California Sur is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, south of the 28th parallel...
, Mexico.
Shell description
The shell is usually brown and marked with many low, flat-topped ribs which run parallel to the 5 to 7 open respiratory pores that are elevated above the shell’s surface. The inside of the shell is an iridescent blue and green. The epipodium is a “ruffle” of tissue along the side of the foot. The head and epipodial tentacles are olive green, but the epipodial fringes are a mottled cream and brown color, with knobby tubercles scattered on the surface and a frilly edge.
The green abalone's shell length can reach a maximum of 20 cm.
Habitat
This species resides in shallow water on open/exposed coast from low intertidal to at least 30 feet (9 m) and perhaps as deep as 60 feet (18 m). They are found in rock crevices, under rocks and other cryptic cavities. Green abalone are herbivores, feeding mostly on drift algae and preferring fleshy red algas.
Predators
Predators of this species other than mankind are
sea otterThe sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals...
s, starfish, large
fishA fish is any aquatic vertebrate animal that is typically ectothermic , covered with scales, and equipped with two sets of paired fins and several unpaired fins...
es and
octopusThe octopus is a cephalopod of the order Octopoda. The octopus inhabits many diverse regions of the ocean, especially coral reefs. The term may also be used to refer only to those creatures in the genus Octopus...
es.
Diseases
Green abalones are subject to a chronic, progressive and lethal disease: the
Withering SyndromeWithering abalone syndrome is a disease of the abalone shellfish, primarily found in the black and red abalone species.First described in 1986, it is caused by the bacterium "Candidatus Xenohaliotis californiensis", which attacks the lining of the abalone's digestive tract, inhibiting the...
or abalone wasting disease, leading to mass mortality.
Reproduction
Green abalone have separate sexes and broadcast spawn from early summer through early fall. Maturity is reached at 2.4 to 5 inches (61-128 mm) length or 5 to 7 years. Lifespan is up to 30 years or more.
Threats and Conservation
Green abalone are threatened by overharvesting and the Withering abalone syndrome disease. California has a
Abalone Recovery Management Planto guide conservation efforts. They are a U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service
Species of Concern. Species of Concern are those species about which the U.S. Government’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
National Marine Fisheries Servicehas some concerns regarding status and threats, but for which insufficient information is available to indicate a need to list the species under the U.S.
Endangered Species Act (ESA).