Shells

The Fearless Slipper Snail

Is that Spotted Slipper Snail safe piggybacking on the operculum of a young Horse Conch? When feeding, the conch extends out of its shell. Consequently, the operculum will be on the opposite end of the head (and mouth), as that hard structure is permanently attached onto the rear part of the foot. So, in spite of the alluring “smells” emanating from the slipper snail, it’d be virtually impossible for the conch to reach back and eat it, as long as the latter remains attached. And, in that sweet s

The Locally Elusive Flat Tree Oyster

For years I’ve been searching for signs of the Flat Tree Oyster in our area. Not a true oyster, Isognomon alatus (Gmelin, 1791) is a rare find along the coast of Southwest Florida, with very few examples present (single digits) among the larger American museum collections. The species is found throughout the Caribbean, the Keys, and the East Coast of Florida. There are a couple of holdings in our collection from Marco Island, but only recently we confirmed the presence of the species in Lee Coun

Shell of the Week: The Amber Pen Shell

This week marks the 400th Shell of the Week in the Island Sun! The Amber Pen Shell, Pinna carnea Gmelin, 1791, inhabits the warm waters of the Caribbean, Florida Keys, and the East Coast of Florida. Shells in this species may reach 30 cm (about 12 inches) in length. The “top” shell edges of the living pen shell are slightly flexible, but become hard and brittle after the animal dies. Pen shells typically live buried in sandy, shallow-water areas of tropical and sub-tropical oceans, attached to a

An Inspirational Shell Book

The Museum’s Founding Director, Robert Tucker Abbott, was certainly the most prolific author of shell and mollusk-related books that ever lived, having published more than 30 books on the subject. Some of his most popular works such as Seashells of the World (1962) and Kingdom of Seashells (1972) have been in print since their original publication and were translated into many languages. A couple of years ago Tucker’s daughter Cynthia Sullivan donated a small collection of some of his more obscu

Georgia O’Keeffe and Shells

I first “found” American painter Georgia O’Keeffe in my teen years and quickly learned to love her paintings, bold images of shells, bones, flowers, and landscapes loaded with personal style, and terrific composition and colors. My “point-of-entry” into O’Keeffe’s artistic universe was “Red Hill and White Shell” on the cover of a book in the art section of a high-end bookstore in Rio de Janeiro. That painting acted like a powerful magnet, pulling me closer to inspect the book in more detail. I s

New Poster: Cool Florida Shells!

The Museum will soon be presenting a new poster showing quintessential and attractive Florida shells. I designed “Cool Florida Shells” during last year’s lockdown, using images shot by me and by Digital Imaging Specialists James F. Kelly and Patricia A. Starkey. The poster covers 68 species of bivalves and gastropods from the East and Southwest Florida coasts, Florida Keys, and deeper offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. It includes scientific and common names and size for each species. Printed thro

The Ugly Duckling Clam

Despite its status as a very common local species in Southwest Florida (and far from being an attractive bivalve), the Ponderous Ark, Noetia ponderosa, is one of my favorite local species. There are a few reasons for that. The photo below explores a different angle and lighting to show cool internal features and structures of the shell in that species. Look at the hinge with its many small teeth and the intricate pattern of different scars indicating areas of muscle attachment of the living anim

Shell of the Week: The Shiny Auger

Hastula augers have bullet-shaped shells with a pointed apex. The Shiny Auger, Hastula hastata (Gmelin, 1791), has a glossy shell surface associated with a sculpture of relatively faint axial (“vertical”) ribs. Augers are found in the sand close to the water edge, in medium- to coarse-sand habitats, where they feed on marine worms.

The Amazing Cuttlefish Eye

The wavy, or w-shaped cuttlefish eye has been recently in the news, as scientists keep researching the unique features and properties of cephalopod eyes. Cuttlefish eyes can perform functions that are similar to those in vertebrates, such as the refined three-dimensional vision that allows them to accurately estimate distance and speed of fast-moving prey. Three-dimensional, or stereoscopic vision in cuttlefish is greatly aided by their ability to swivel their eyes back-and-forth, a talent unkno

The Magnificent Milk Conch

Two of the best-known species of true conchs (family Strombidae) in the western Atlantic, Milk Conchs (Macrostrombus costatus) and Queen Conchs (Aliger gigas) are quite distinctive as mature snails. When reaching maturity, both species start thickening and flaring the shells’ outer lip. However, without the flared lips typical of each species. young Milk Conchs can be easily confused with young Queen Conchs. Nonetheless, if you observe the living animals, you’ll see that they differ, among other