Nucella squamosa, common name the scaly dogwhelk, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Muricidae, the murex snails or rock snails.
The scaly dogwhelk is a small brown whelk with many fine knobbly spiral ridges on its shell. It grows up to 5 cm in total length. The ridges of the snail's shell are not often visible because the whelk is usually overgrown by the high-spined commensal hydroid, Hydtractinia altispina, which looks prickly and is orange.[1]
This marine snail is found off the southern African coast from central Namibia to Port St Johns, subtidally to 50m under water.[1]
The eggs are laid in small groups of capsules which resemble stalked clubs. The commensal hydroid deters several of the snail's predators.[1]