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

Apr 13, 2018

The Half-naked Pen Shell

The Half-naked Pen Shell, Atrina seminuda (Lamarck, 1819), is the rarest among the three species of pen shells found in Southwest Florida. It differs from the more common Stiff Pen Shell, Atrina rigida, by having its large adductor muscle scar well within the boundaries of the iridescent (nacreous) area inside shell valve (arrow on shell image). The Stiff Pen Shell has that scar “protruding” beyond those boundaries. In addition, the color of the mantle in the living Half-nake

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