Curator's Blog

Museum, research, and collection updates from Dr. José H. Leal, plus Shell of the Week, which highlights a different species every Friday. Most Shells of the Week—but not all—are found in Southwest Florida.

Dr. José H. Leal serves as the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum’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. Under his leadership, the Museum was awarded its first accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums in 2010.

José H. Leal

Aug 7, 2015

The Atlantic Petricolid

The Atlantic Petricolid, Choristodon robustus (G.B. Sowerby I, 1834), is an inch-long clam belonging to the Venus Clam family Veneridae. The species is found from North Carolina to Brazil. Shells of other members of the Venus Clam family, such as the Southern Quahog, the Sunray Venus, and the Cross-barred Venus, to name a few, are commonly found along the beaches and bays of Southwest Florida. This is not the case with the shells of the Atlantic Petricolid: the species is pre

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