Fenimorea moseri (Dall, 1889) is a local member of the family Drilliidae that may reach 30 mm (about 1.2 inches) in length. In larger shells, there are about ten whorls, and about 11 ribs per whorl. The interspaces between ribs are filled with a microsculpture of very narrow spiral lines. The posterior sinus, or “turrid notch”, is broad, curved. Color varies from a light pink to waxy-cream. #fenimoreamoseri #moserdrillia #drilliidae #sanibel
Earlier this week, one of our Museum Marine Biologists texted me a photo of an unknown, small snail. The snail was found in our Cold-water Touch Pool, along with two others of the same species. The shells are flat, about 10 mm (about 3/8”) across, with well-defined white spines set against a brick-red background. It just so happens that the little snails are the offspring of our resident Red Turban Snails, Pomaulax gibberosus (Dillwyn, 1817). As you can see from the images below, the young are s
Ammonites are a group of extinct marine mollusks that belong in the Cephalopoda, the same class that includes octopuses, squids, and nautiluses. Ammonites are known for their heavy, planispiral (“flat”) shells. They also include the largest shell known among mollusks, Parapuzosia seppenradensis, first found in 1895 in Germany, which reached at least 180 cm (about 5.9 feet) across. Despite their large size and apparent diversity through geological time, little is known about the anatomy and body
At the National Shell Museum, we love to emphasize the immense diversity of mollusks and the cool things they do for a living. When reproducing, many bottom-living marine mollusks, including snails, breed open-water, swimming larvae. The very small sizes of those free-living larvae allow them to drift in the water and be carried by currents and eddies, until the time comes for settling onto the bottom as young adults. Free-living larvae of some species can stay in open water for several weeks or
We have discussed in the past the fantastic physical features of shell material. The structural properties of mother-of-pearl, also known as nacre, for instance, a material of great strength and resilience, have been tapped for uses in engineering, optics, electronics, and other hi-tech applications. Not all molluscan shells include a nacreous layer, though. When present, nacre is usually the internal shell layer, showing iridescent, always-shifting colors. (the shells of nautiluses and abalones
At 2.5 mm (about 0.1 inch), Caecum pulchellum Stimpson, 1851 is a local member of the family Caecidae, a group of marine microgastropods that have spiral juvenile shells that become cylindrical in the adult stage. The juvenile shells of caecums actually “fall” at the inception of adulthood. The Beautiful Caecum has a shell sculpture of about 20 “rings” that are half as wide as the interspaces separating them. The color is white or tan. The image was taken with a Scanning Electron Microscope. #ca
Like wentletraps? Here are from left: Angulate, Humphrey, and Tollin wentletraps (from left, Epitonium angulatum, E. humphreysii, and E. tollini), .three species living along the coast of Southwest Florida. Observe how the Humphrey Wentletrap has a much darker operculum (the “trapdoor”) when compared to the two other species! And Tollin Wentletrap is the smallest and daintiest among the three species, usually reaching only about 5 mm (or 0.2 inch; the photos are not to scale). On Sanibel Island,
In the photos below, the image at left shows the distinctive hinge teeth of the Southern Quahog, Mercenaria campechiensis (Gmelin, 1791), as well as the distinct “scars” that hint at areas of contact between the living clam’s muscles and its shell. And you may be wondering about the image on the right? Well, the story goes like this: A few years ago, after taking the photo of the hinge, it looked to me like two people facing each other. But I was left with a lingering feeling that I had seen tho
The Museum received a special donation for the acquisition of essential technical equipment. The new gift, from a dear friend of the Museum who opted to stay anonymous, will further the educational and research components of the organization’s mission. With the new funds, the Museum will be acquiring a high-definition underwater web camera to stream our Giant Pacific Octopus activities. The camera is specifically designed for cold, saltwater aquariums. The new “Octocam” will make it possible for
Megapitaria maculata (Linnaeus, 1758) is one of the most attractive local bivalves. Its shell may grow to almost 70 mm (about 2.8 inches). The glossy, translucent periostracum (outer shell layer) is superimposed on a pattern of very fine growth lines. The shells bear variations on a pattern of brown-and-tan checkerboard-like markings. The Calico Clam is a member of the super-speciose (with many species) family of Venus clams, the Veneridae, which includes at least 20 species in the area of Sanib