Author Archives: José H. Leal

Thrilled With The Neptunea Award!

At the recent 2023 Conchologists of America Convention (COA) in Wilmington, North Carolina, I was honored with the celebrated Neptunea Award, along with my friends Bob and Alice Pace, and colleague (and friend) Dr Emily Vokes (not in the photo). The award was given for my “service to the science of Malacology as it applies to conchologists anywhere.” The honor is particularly meaningful to me, given that, as a professional malacologist, I always strived to narrow the perceived gaps between profe

Shell of the Week: The Depressed Top Snail

Calliostoma yucatecanum is one of the many eye-catching species of Calliostoma top snails found in moderately deep water off the southeastern USA and the Gulf of Mexico. Reaching about 16 mm (about 0.62 inch), the shell in this species is covered with spiral cords crossed by very fine axial lines. The color is cream-yellow, with little orangish marks flecked on the spiral ribs. The shell in the images was dredged in 1989 off Panama City (Florida Panhandle) between 30-60 m depth. Illustration is

Mollusks in “Changing Seas”

Early this Summer, the TV series “Changing Seas”, presented by WBPT-2 (South Florida PBS) station will feature an entire episode dedicated to mollusks and their shells, introducing the National Shell Museum as one of the relevant expert institutions. For now, check excerpts of the episode in the series of social media posts titled “Shells with Doc José Leal” featured in the “Changing Seas” and National Shell Museum’s Facebook and Instagram pages.@changingseas #changingseas https://www.facebook.c

Triton Children and Their Parents

Last Monday I posted “When the children look nothing like their famous parents” in the Museum’s social media: The original image showed two distinctive stages in the life of the Atlantic Triton Trumpet, Charonia variegata, a large marine snail that can be found offshore along the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, east coast of Florida, and the Keys. The 10 mm (about 3/8-inch) juvenile shell, shown here in the top-middle, looks nothing like the 330 mm (about 13-inches), adult shell of the same speci

Abalones Under Threat

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has since 1964 published the Red List of Threatened Species. The list is a great tool, informing about biodiversity and conservation, and providing data for policy change and protection of natural resources. Invertebrates such as mollusks have traditionally been neglected and only relatively recently have found their way into the Red List. The abalone family Haliotidae is one of the few families of mollusks with all known species covered

Shell of the Week: The Knobbed Triton

Also known as the Knobbly Triton, Gutturnium muricinum, is one among many triton species (family Cymatiidae) found along the east coast of Florida and the Florida Keys. (The genus Gutturnium is *monotypic*, i.e., it includes only one species.) The Knobbed Triton is also present in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico throughout the Caribbean south to Brazil. They can grow up to 75 mm (about three inches). Triton snails have larvae that spend weeks, sometimes months, living in open water. The protocon

Wrapping Up “Shell and Tell”

As the National Shell Museum reaches the crucial stage of its post-Hurricane Ian reconstruction period and once again closes its doors to the visiting public, time has come to thank the volunteers that staffed the Shell and Tell presentation on the second floor of the Museum. Starting last February 1st, when the Museum reopened temporarily, Kathy Kenley, Linda Kramer, Angela Marsland, Ann Moeder, brothers Cabe and Holt Rieck, and Karen Turner took turns bringing the program to fruition with dedi

The Thrush Cowrie Rides Again!

Another occurrence of the non-native Thrush Cowrie, Naria turdus, in Palm Beach County, this time by Trent Gamble, who stumbled on the shell on the beach in Boca Raton, about a mile north of Boca Inlet. Thanks to Bruce Haver, who photographed the shell, and Don Swenson, who made the connection with Bruce and Trent possible. The Thrush Cowrie was first reported in Florida last month, in paper co-authored by Anton Oleinik, José H. Leal, Anne Dupont, Nuch Uthairat. Read the paper here.#nariaturdus

Shell of the Week: The Scaly Pearl Oyster

A not-so-common bivalve from Florida, Pinctada longisquamosa differs from the more commonly found Atlantic Pearl Oyster, Pinctada imbricata, among other characters, mainly by the long, overlapping projections on its periostracum (the external shell layer.) The species reaches 29 mm in size (about 1.15 inches), and is found from Bermuda, Bahamas, east coast of Florida and the Keys, throughout the southern Caribbean Sea to Venezuela and Colombia. Illustration created by Patricia A. Starkey for the

Wing Oysters and Sea Fans

Wing (or Winged) oysters get their common name from the wing-like expansions on their shells, also known as "auricles". The shells of young individuals show relatively larger auricles when compared to those of adults. The internal shell surface is nacreous, or pearl-like. Wing oysters and pearl oysters are members of the family Pteriidae and are not very closely related to true (edible) oysters, which belong in the family Ostreidae. Atlantic Wing Oysters, Pteria colymbus, are commonly found livi