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

Jun 26, 2015

The Stiff Pen Shell and its Nacre

The nacreous shell layer of Pen Shells imparts the trademark, dark iridescence that is so typical to the inner surface of Pen and other shells. The nacreous layer, or mother-of-pearl, is composed of thousands of very thin, flat, colorless, translucent calcium carbonate crystals (also known as tablets). These flat crystals cause incident light to scatter and reflect back at different angles, which is perceived as distinctive colors. The tablets are separated thin layers of org

José H. Leal

Jan 31, 2014

The Stiff Pen Shell

Atrina rigida (Lightfoot, 1786) is commonly found on the beaches of Sanibel and Captiva during the winter months. Storm winds and waves remove the live, dark-shelled bivalves from the bottom, depositing them in large quantities on the beaches. Pen shells anchor themselves to the sandy bottom using a bundle of silky fibers called a byssus. The large shells are buried with the narrower side of “triangle” oriented upward. The Stiff Pen Shell, with detail showing opening of th

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Curator's Corner