Prunum guttatum (Dillwyn, 1817) reaches 26 mm (about one inch). It has a smooth, glossy shell, with a typical color pattern of irregular white spots set against a background of three faint, tan-colored spiral bands. The species is found from the coast of Southeast Florida to the lower Caribbean. (A large reproduction of this illustration is displayed in the In Focus exhibition at the National Shell Museum.)
Eratoidea hematita (Kiener, 1834) has a striking glossy, carmine-red, or pink color that is very bright in the living animal. After the snail dies, the remarkably strong color hues slowly fade away. The outer lip in this species bears about 15 denticles, and the columella (on the other side) has about four strong folds. The species is found in South Florida, the Florida Keys, and the Caribbean. (A large reproduction of this illustration is displayed in the In Focus exhibition at the National She
The Giant Triton, Monoplex parthenopeus (Salis Marschlins, 1793), is a relatively common western Atlantic species that is present also in parts of the Indian and Pacific oceans. The long-lasting pelagic (open-water) larvae in this species allows for crossing of wide ocean expanses at the larval stage. This is one of the reasons for the broad geographical distribution of this species. National Shell Museum collaborator Anne DuPont photographed this Giant Triton off Pompano Beach, in Florida. Her
Prunum carneum (Storer, 1837) reaches 18 mm (about 0.7 inches), and has a glossy, bright-orange shell surface, with two white bands. The pigments in the living snail are very vivid, but tend to fade quickly after the animal dies. The Orange Marginella is found in shallow water off South Florida, the Florida Keys, and the Caribbean. (A large reproduction of this illustration will be in the In Focus exhibition, opening on May 29.) #prunumcarneum #orangemarginella #marginellidae #stockisland #infoc
In a pen shell, that is! Museum friend and collaborator Amy Tripp from Marco Island took this great photo of a pinnotherid crab (arrow) inside a pen shell (probably a Stiff Pen Shell, Atrina rigida). Pinnotherids are tiny, soft-bodied crabs that live inside the mantle and gills of some bivalve mollusks (and the occasional large gastropod such as a true conch (family Strombidae) or abalone (Haliotis species). Pinnotherid crabs are commensals, i.e., they take advantage of their hosts' meals or lef
Now our Giant Pacific Octopus is jealous! On June 3, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center will launch SpaceX’s 22nd resupply mission to the International Space Station. In the payload of the Falcon 9 rocket are several immature Glow-in the-Dark Bobtail Squid, Euprymna scolopes. The young squids are part of a research project titled UMAMI, short for Understanding of Microgravity on Animal-Microbe Interactions. The project examines the effects of spaceflight on interactions between beneficial microbes and
Most bivalve mollusks are filter-feeders, straining water to get their food, usually microscopic plants. Exceptions to this include marine clams that prey on small creatures, such as crustaceans. Some of these clams, the septibranchs, use a flexible, muscular "wall", or septum, as a diaphragm pump that allows the animal to quickly and decisively suck prey in. The inch-long Specter Clam, Dilemma spectralis Leal, 2008 (below), a deep-sea dweller found off Vanuatu in the SW Pacific, is one of them.
Museum collaborator extraordinaire Amy Tripp photographed this Dusky Cone, Conasprella stearnsii, in the process of laying what will be the next generation of Dusky Cones. As most cone snails do, Dusky Cones release their eggs inside translucent egg capsules. The capsules provide a physical barrier between the eggs and embryos and the external environment, protecting them from sudden changes in water chemistry, and serving as a container for a nourishing brew known as intracapsular liquid. The D
Cyphoma mcgintyi Pilsbry, 1939 live in association with sea whips and sea fans, and can be found on the East Coast of Florida, the Caribbean, and parts of the Gulf of Mexico. The glossy, smooth nature of the shell results from the animal being able to completely envelop the shell with the soft mantle when active. The shell typically has faint tints of lilac or pink color. #mcgintycyphoma # cyphomamcginty #ovulidae #sanibel
Brachidontes exustus (Linnaeus, 1758) reaches about 25 mm (about one inch). The shell has a “semi-triangular” outline, with a sculpture of many very fine radial ribs that form minute denticles on the inner edge of the valves. The color is yellowish-brown to dark-brown, with the inner surface a metallic purple mottled with white. Genetic studies in the past have shown that what we consider to be the Scorched Mussel may consist of more than one species. #brachidontesexustus #scorchedmussel #mytili