The largest shark's eye in the photo is 2" long and was found on Cayo Costa last year. Cayo Costa is an island accessed by boat only and is north of Captiva and Sanibel Islands. This shell is also known as tiger's eye. You may not want to bleach them to preserve the exterior. But if they're already sunbleached, then it won't matter. You can always shine them up a bit by putting a coat of artist quality varnish on them.
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Murex are a sturdy shell and I find them mainly on Sanibel Island. Search the beach or the shallow surf waters to find a gem.
These little gems were found on Lover's Key. The ones pictured above range in size from 1/2" to 3/4" in size. These three are the only ones in my collection and I just recently found them in May 2010.
The two big cockle shells are actually the halves of one big shell found on Sanibel Island and is about 3-1/2 inches in size. Cockle shells of various sizes and coloring can also be found on Lover's Key, Caya Costa, Estero Island, and Bonita Beach. Caya Costa is an island only accessible by boat and is located between North Captiva Island and Boca Grande.
Dave and I were shelling near the Outrigger on Estero Island when he found this beautiful crown conch. Normally we find the Florida fighting conch but this is the first time we've ever encountered this shell. It has blue-gray and brown spiral bands and spiky points that protrude at the top.
Last week I was looking for shells near the Sanibel fishing pier when I met a nice man named John Oths. He seemed to know quite a lot about shells and mentioned that he was a biologist and judge for the Sanibel Shell Show. He gave me a couple of shells and identified the above shells as "bubble shells". He also explained the wentletrap shell and that its name derives from the German word for spiral staircase. When I get a nice looking wentletrap, I'll post it. He encouraged me to enter a seashell wreath in next year's show. Perhaps I may enter. How about you? John also is known for finding and identifying Sanibel's 300th shell!
These olives pictured vary in size from 3/4" to 2" long. Pristine ones are very shiny and smooth. Usually you find seashells stuck inside. What I do is get a butter knife and break apart the those shells over a trash can.
Often you'll see a hole one end of the shell. This is caused by a sea creature looking for food by actually drilling the shell. These are great shells to use in making a seashell wreath. They add a 3 dimenshional look; they're curved to fit in between 2 shells like a puzzle piece; plus if you flip them over, they sometimes have a nice pink bottom. Oftentimes I'll glue them upside down to showcase the pinkness of the shell.
Most times you'll see the spines have worn down. But if you look closely at the picture, you can see the real spiny ones. Sizes range from 3/4" to 1-1/2" with 1" being the average. The good news is these shells are found on most Southwest Florida beaches. After a while you develop an "eye" for them and soon you'll be able to pick them out from the many varieties of other shells laying on the beach. These shells were found at Indian Key near Islamorada in the Florida Keys just a few days ago. They were on the bayside right at the shoreline among some rocks. Shelling is quite sparse here, so finding them made for a delightful day.
Whelks are truly a treasure and they're not always easy to find. Sometimes when you're walking along the surf, you'll see a tiny pointed tip. Dig that up and you could find treasure - a whelk! Mostly, though, you'll see whelks along the beach or in the shallow water among the common shells. There is a "no live shell" restriction. I know it can be disappointing to toss a really pretty whelk back to sea if there's an occupant, but it'll give you a reason to come back another time.
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AuthorI've been in love with having sand between my toes since I was a teenager taking the ferry across the bay to arrive at Presque Isle State Park (aka The Peninsula) in Erie, PA. Archives
September 2012
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