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.

The Spotted Slipper Snail

The Spotted Slipper Snail, Crepidula maculosa Conrad, 1846, is the most colorful species among the six local species of Slipper Snails (family Calyptraeidae). Slipper Snails are unusual in their feeding habits in that they are filter-feeding gastropods (filtering the water to retain micro-algae is the common type of feeding in bivalves, but rare among gastropods). The Spotted Slipper Snail may grow to about 1.5 inches, and has its white shell ornamented with brownish streaks and a pure white, sh

The Stout Tagelus

Last week I introduced the Purplish Tagelus, commenting that its characteristic spatula-shaped shell is similar only to that of its sister-species, the Stout Tagelus, Tagelus plebeius (Lightfoot, 1786). This latter species is a bit larger, reaching in excess of 2 inches (instead of 1.5 in the Purplish Tagelus), and lacks the purplish coloration of the other one. The Stout Tagelus, Tagelus plebeius, from Sanibel Island. Photo by José H. Leal. #StoutTagelus #Tagelusplebeius

The Purplish Tagelus

A species commonly found on the bay side of the local barrier islands, the Purplish Tagelus, Tagelus divisus (Spengler, 1794), reaches about 1.5 inches in shell length. With a spatula-shaped shell that is at least three times as long as it is wide, there is little chance for the casual collector to confuse this with any other local species. The exception is its sister species, the Stout Tagelus (which will be discussed in this column next week). The Purplish Tagelus differs from the Stout Tagelu

The Elongated Macoma

Another species in the ongoing treatment in this column of the local Tellin bivalves (family Tellinidae), the Elongated Macoma, Macoploma tenta (Say, 1834), is probably the rarest of the local medium-size species. At a little less than an inch long, The Elongated Macoma is translucent-white or faintly yellowish, with weak growth marks and the typical “squarish” posterior shell end (on the left of the valves in the photo). The Elongated Macoma, Macoploma tenta, from Captiva Island. Photo by José

The Constricted Macoma

Again, we proceed with the synopsis of local Tellins (Family Tellinidae), today with a discussion of the Constricted Macoma, Austromacoma constricta (Bruguière, 1792). The 1.5–2 inch-long bivalve is one of the local species of bivalves that thrives in the muddy bottoms of the back-bay areas of Southwest Florida. As such, its shells will be rarely found on the Gulf beaches. The posterior end is pointed, and the shell sculpture consists of very faint growth lines. The Constricted Macoma is whitish

The Rose Petal Tellin

We continue the overview of local Tellins with a brief presentation of the Rose Petal Tellin, Eurytellina lineata (Turton, 1819). The 1–1.5 inch-long bivalve is, together with its “sister”, the Alternate Tellin, one of the most common local species of the family Tellinidae. Thanks to the bright pink color of one of its varietals, it is one of the species preferred by local shell crafters. The Rose Petal Tellin can also be white, sometimes with a little wisp of pink color near the apex (the bival

The Alternate Tellin

With about 12 local species, the Tellinidae is one of the most diverse families of shallow-water marine bivalves in SW Florida. Last week we discussed the Candystick Tellin, Scissula similis (J. Sowerby, 1806). This week the featured species is one of its cousins, the locally common Alternate Tellin, Eurytellina alternata (Say, 1822). This species may reach between two and three inches in length, and displays the compressed shape typical of the family. The external shell sculpture consists of fi

The Candystick Tellin

The Candystick Tellin, Scissula similis (J. Sowerby, 1806), is a member of the locally (and globally) diverse Tellin family, the Tellinidae. The species may reach a little more than an inch in length, and displays the elliptical, compressed shape typical of the family. The Candystick Tellin lives buried in sandy bottoms. Its shell has a fine sculpture of concentric lines, but what really sets the species apart from its close relatives is its delicate coloration: a whitish or yellowish-white back

The Brown Gem Clam

The Brown Gem Clam, Parastarte triquetra (Conrad, 1846), is the smallest local member of the Veneridae, a large bivalve family that includes locally familiar species such as the Sunray Venus, the Calico Clam, and the Southern Quahog. At only about 0.12 inch in size, Brown Gem Clams are usually hard to detect: Most of the specimens in the Museum collection were obtained through sifting of previously collected samples of fine sand or bay mud. Its shells have an elongate-triangular shape, and are s

The Flattened Carditid

In the last two weeks I introduced the bivalves Broad-Ribbed Carditid and Three-Tooth Carditid. Today, to complete the conversation about local members of the family Carditidae, I want to “invite to the podium” the Flattened Carditid, Pteromeris perplana (Conrad, 1841). A small bivalve, reaching only about ¼-inch, this species has a very flat shell, a feature indicated in the specific name, the Latin compound word perplana, which translates into “hyper flat”. The shell is triangular, but with a