Curator’s Corner

Museum, research, and collection updates from Dr. José H. Leal, plus Shell of the Week, which highlights a different species every other Friday. Most Shells of the Week are found in Southwest Florida.

Dr. José H. Leal serves as the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium’s Science Director and Curator. He received his Ph.D. in Marine Biology and Fisheries from the University of Miami and has served at the Museum since 1996.

“Loco” is the “Mollusk of the Year” for 2023!

For a few years now, the Senckenberg Museum Frankfurt, the LOEWE Center for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (TBG), and Unitas Malacologica have been promoting the election of “Mollusks of the Year.” The endeavor is non-discriminatory: Anyone can nominate their favorite species, from any geographic area. Species from marine, land, and freshwater environments are eligible. The selection takes place in March ever year, and TBG will sequence the complete genome (the entire DNA, comprising all ge

Shell of the Week: The Smooth Sundial

Psilaxis krebsii (Mörch, 1875) is a marine snail of the sundial family Architectonicidae that may reach about 14 mm (about 0.5 inch) in diameter. The characteristic “UFO-shaped” shell has slightly convex whorls; the shell surface is basically smooth, except for very weak spiral cords near the shell periphery (the “outer rim” of the shell) and a prominent cord at the periphery. The umbilicus is wide and deep, with the “staircase-like” edge that is typical of many sundial species. The background c

The Thrush Cowrie in South Florida

In a research note to be published next week in the Museum’s shell-science journal The Nautilus, Anton E. Oleinik, José H. Leal, Anne DuPont, and Nuch Uthairat record and discuss the recent finding of the non-indigenous Thrush Cowrie, Naria turdus, in the waters of Lake Worth Lagoon, in Palm Beach County, Florida. The species, which had previously been documented in several Caribbean islands, is native to the Red Sea and western Indian Ocean. It’d be interesting to hear from our readers in case

The Allure of Small Size

Micromollusks, by definition, never grow larger than 5 mm (0.2 inches). Despite their small size, micromollusks may have shells as attractive as those of their larger-sized cousins, and have life processes just as complex. Scientific surveys done in different regions of the planet indicate that very large shares of the marine mollusk biodiversity in those areas consist of micromollusks. For instance, on Sanibel and Captiva islands (Florida) alone, there are at least 20 species of vitrinellas (ph

Shell of the Week: The Small-callus Vitrinella

Teinostoma parvicallum Pilsbry & McGinty, 1945, reaches only about 2 mm (0.08 inch) in diameter. The shell is smooth except for very faint growth lines, which are more noticeable around the suture, or the groove separating two successive whorls. There is a small callus (thickening) at the center of the umbilicus (the “hole” on the base of the shell). As with many members of the micromollusk family Teinostomatidae, the shell color is translucent-white. This species is among the smallest found on

The Lightning Whelk’s Reverse Harem

Lightning Whelks, Sinistrofulgur sinistrum, are special in several ways. Not only are their shells left-handed (shell opens to the left) but, during mating season in late fall and winter, several males may converge on a much-larger female to fertilize her eggs. During the mating event, each male will fertilize a different batch of eggs in the same female. When the young start hatching in late winter-early fall, a single string of egg capsules will yield children from the same mother, but from di

Shell of the Week: The Clawed Marginella

Dentimargo idiochila (Schwengel, 1943), reaches 6 mm (about 0.24 inch). The shell has a relatively long, pointed spire, an aperture that spans about half of the shell length, and the columella with four folds. The shell is smooth, glossy, yellowish, sometimes with two whitish bands on the last shell whorl. The species is found along the coast of east Florida and the Florida Keys. The distinctive feature on the shell of this species is the prominent tooth-like, or claw-like projection on the ante

Safety in Numbers?

Cone snails are known to perform communal spawning (AKA as group spawning), where many females deposit their egg capsules in the same spot. But it looks like this small group of communal-spawning cone snails include two species, the Florida Cone, Conus anabathrum, and the Alphabet Cone, Conus spurius. They were apparently laying their eggs on an empty Horseshoe Crab carapace, at Caxambas Pass, south of Marco Island, Florida. We accept that the communal spawning behavior supposedly improves on th

Shell of the Week: The Florida Miter

Dibaphimitra florida (A. Gould, 1856) reaches up to 74 mm (about 2.9 inches). A marine gastropod of the miter family Mitridae, it is found in relatively shallow water off the coast of east Florida, the Keys, and the northern Caribbean Region. The shell is attractive, with a regular pattern of small light-brown spots set against a yellowish-white background. I’ve seen novice shell enthusiasts confusing this species with the celebrated Junonia. Illustration by James F. Kelly for the Museum’s Digit

A Big World Record Size Shell!

The National Shell Museum received a new world record size shell for its collection! Mr. Donald Dan, of Fort Myers, Florida, generously acquired the record-size West Indian Chank, Turbinella angulata, for the Museum collection. The shell, collected years ago by shrimp fishermen offshore of Roatan, Honduras, measures 499 mm (just under 20 inches). The gift was reported in the Monday, February 13, online version of the Fort Myers News-Press, with a comprehensive interview about the species and the