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

May 8, 2015

The Wedge Piddock

The Wedge Piddock, Martesia cuneiformis (Say, 1822), is a wood borer that may be found in driftwood and floating logs in the Western Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. The shell, which may attain ¾ inch in length, is usually pear-shaped, and very thin. Typically, Piddock clams have the anterior (wider) part of the shell equipped with rows of tiny tooth-like projections. These act as a cheese grater, enabling the clam to bore its way into the wood. For readers who collect this

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