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.
Vasum cassiforme is a shallow-water gastropod that may reach 115 mm (about 4.5 inches). Its shell is heavy for its size, thick, presenting robust spines. Given the ending of the species name (cassi + forme = “shaped like a Cassis”),...
As I am sure you know by now, the National Shell Museum & Aquarium recently opened Phase 1 of its renovated Great Hall of Shells. It was great to work with the Museum and the design teams and prepare the content and select the shells for all the exhibits...
Here is yet another episode of the “Family Pages” series: There at least six species of ceriths (family Cerithiidae) along the coast of Southwest Florida; here they are: 1 – Grass Cerith (Bittiolum varium); 2 – Dark Cerith (Cerithium atratum); 3 – Ivory Cerith (Cerithium eburneum); 4 – Stocky Cerith...
Aequipecten flabellum is an attractive scallop species (family Pectinidae), celebrated for the eye-catching colors of its shells, which include brilliant variations of red and orange with inclusions of white, gray, or black. African Fan Scallops may reach ...
Turbo jourdani is one of the largest species of turban shells, reaching at least 20 cm (about 8 inches). The Jourdan’s Turban is geographically restricted to western and southern Australia. This shell, displayed with its massive operculum, is species number 52 in the new “Global Distribution” exhibit of our renovated “Great Hall of Shells”. Don’t miss it! …
Here is yet another episode of the “Family Pages” series: There at least 8 species of melampus and their relatives (family Ellobiidae) associated with mangrove ecosystems along the coast of Southwest Florida; here they are: 1 – Left-handed Melampus (Blauneria heteroclita); 2 – Amber Melampus (Creedonia succinea); 3 – White Melampus (Ellobium dominicense); 4 – Eastern Melampus (Melampus bidentatus); 5 – Bubble Melampus (Melampus bullaoides); 6 – Coffee Melampus (…
After almost three years of planning, design, and fabrication, the central exhibits area of the Great Hall of Shells is open to the public. The Hall had been closed since Hurricane Ian made landfall on Sanibel in September 2002. Actual harm from the storm to the exhibits was negligible, but repair to water damage to the walls required removal of many exhibits. The time was ripe for much-needed renovation anyway. Executive Director Sam Ankerson decided to tackle the challenge head-on. Phase One of the Great Hall of Shells. Photo: José…
Calliostoma hendersoni reaches 23 mm (a little less than an inch) in diameter. As with many other deep-water species of top snails (family Calliostomatidae) from the western Atlantic, this one has a very elegant shell. The base has reddish-brown spiral lines against a cream-colored background, a narrow but deep umbilicus, and the spire presents a slightly concave profile in lateral view. Most distinctively, Henderson’s Top Snail has a series of relatively large spots along the shell periphery (the outermost shell “edge”). The species lives in moderately deep water: this specimen…
In another episode of our “Family Pages” series, check out the great diversity of the family Tellinidae along the coast of Southwest Florida. There are at least 14 species locally: 1 – Sibling Tellin (Ameritella consobrina); 2 – Slandered Tellin (Ameritella probrina); 3 – Texas Tellin (Ameritella texana); 4 – Constricted Macoma (Austromacoma constricta); 5 – Alternate Tellin (Eurytellina alternata); 6 – Rose Petal Tellin (Eurytellina lineata): 7 – Atlantic Fat Tellin (Leporimetis ephippium); 8 – Elongated Macoma (Macoploma tenta); 9 –…
Cerithiella sigsbeana is a small gastropod of the family Newtoniellidae that reaches only 13 mm (about 0.5 inch). Its elongate shell is adorned with four beaded spiral cords (“ridges”). The specimen is catalogued as Cerithiella cf. sigsbeana in the Museum collection. After a consultation with Dr Mauricio Fernandes (a marine biologist at Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and a specialist of the Newtoniellidae), he suggested that this species could be a variation extreme of C. sigsbeana, with very pronounced beads on the spiral cord;…