Cabbage Murex Shell, Hexaplex brassica

Cabbage Murex shell, Hexaplex brassica. Size: 14.7 cm (5.8 inches) x 10.7 cm (4.2 inches). Shell provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, April 2010.

The Cabbage Murex, Hexaplex brassica (Lamarck, 1822), is a gastropod mollusk that is a member of the Muricidae Family of Rock, that is also known as the Rose Murex and in Mexico as busano repollo. The Shell is large with five to seven whorls, a low spire, varices that extend the length of the body whorl with heavy spines or horns, a moderately long open or closed siphon canal, and a large oval aperture. The exterior of the shell is light brown, pink or white with the edges of the varices are marked by pink frills and many have three very subtle brown bands; the interior is white with pink hues around the margin of the aperture. The Cabbage Murex reach a maximum of 21 cm (8.3 inches) in length and 15 cm (6.0 inches) in height.

Cabbage Murexes are found on rock or mud substrate in the intertidal zone to depths up to 55 m (180 feet). They range from Loreto, Baja California Sur to Peru. They have not been documented from the west coast of Baja, however the shell photographed below came from the greater Todos Santos area at the southwest corner of Baja California Sur where they are plentiful.

Synonyms include Hexaplex (muricanthus) brassica, Murex brassica, Murex ducalis, Murex rhodocheilus, and Phyllonotus brassica.