Channeled dog winkle

Nucella canaliculata has a robust shell with a strong spire, a short notch to house the siphon, and up to seven whorls. The whorls are demarcated from each other by deep grooves and are sculpted with many low spiral ridges of approximately even size. The surface of the shell is matt; small individuals are often orange while larger ones are grayish or pale brown. The margins of the aperture are often yellow, and the animal's soft parts are protected by a horny operculum. The maximum length of this species is about 4 cm (1.6 in). This dog winkle can be distinguished from the frilled dog winkle (Nucella lamellosa) by the absence of frilled decoration, and from the northern striped dog winkle (Nucella ostrina) by the evenness of the size of the sculpted ridges.