Curator's Corner

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 11, 2017

The Corrugate Jewel Box

The Corrugate Jewel Box, Chama congregata Conrad, 1833, resembles another local species of the Jewel Box family Chamidae, the Leafy Jewel Box, Chama macerophylla Gmelin, 1791. The Corrugate Jewel Box differs from this latter however, by its smaller size, never reaching more than 1.5 inch. The sculpture consists of corrugated radial ribs, while in the Leafy Jewel Box it is comprised of scale-like, “leafy” ornaments. Individuals of both species attach themselves to hard substra

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